Eddie Berman Shares Album Track “Pascal’s Triangle” From Upcoming Album ‘Frontiers,’ Out Sept 20

August 16, 2019 BY Nettwerk

Portland, OR-based singer/songwriter Eddie Berman shares a second track, “Pascal’s Triangle,” from his upcoming album Frontiers, out September 20th. “Pascal’s Triangle” sees Berman’s heartfelt delivery resound through deliberate flatpicking and lush choral harmonies. Evoking the life-altering experience of seeing his first child for the first time after his wife’s tumultuous delivery, the track proves to be passionate and powerful.  Eddie will perform as part of AmericanaFest in Nashville on Tuesday, September 10 at The Hight Watt (8:30pm).

 

The name of the song was inspired by a passage from John O’Donohue’s book Beauty, in which he paraphrases a quote from Blaise Pascal, saying: “In times of hardship keep an image of beauty in your mind.” Berman explains, “It’s the idea that holding on to one irreducible, genuinely beautiful thing can see you through anything.  When I first read that notion, I immediately thought of the birth of my daughter. Holding her brand-new, little body against my chest felt like stepping into a new frontier. Parenthood is obviously a long and daunting road, but that first moment seems like it will sustain me through all of it.”

With Frontiers, the critically acclaimed troubadour surveys himself and the world around him over the course of 11 heartfelt vignettes rooted in his signature fingerpicking style, accompanied by ethereal lap steel, bellowing double bass, and orchestral percussion. The album, in all its warm yet vibrant production, is inspired by nature, literature, and, of course, the joys and struggles of Berman’s own life. He previously released lead single “The Match,” which blends bending fingerpicking and boisterous horns with a meditative beat soaked in droning harmonium.  Listen HERE.

Originally from Southern California, Berman relocated his family to Portland, OR last year. As he settled into life in his new city, he began making a daily pilgrimage to nearby Forest Park, one of the largest urban forests in the US. He made it a ritual to go on a six mile hike each morning, during which he immersed himself in the books and lectures of great philosophers like O’ Donohue, Rainer Maria Rilke, Thich Nhat Hanh. “I’d hike the immensely beautiful three miles to the top of the trail listening to these incredible thinkers, and then hike back down in silence, unpacking what I’d heard. The constant through lines of these works started seeping into me: the deep solace of nature, the necessity of solitude, and the importance of always trying to see yourself on the threshold to new frontiers. Those notions continue to inform my life and they certainly informed this album, both lyrically and musically.”

Berman initially made waves in the acoustic music world when his bedroom demos were given significant airplay on influential LA radio station KCRW.  In 2014, Eddie made his debut with the EP Blood & Rust, featuring his duet of “Dancing in the Dark” with British folk icon Laura Marling. The adored Springsteen cover received praise from Spin, NME, Consequence of Sound, Uncut and more. In the aftermath, Berman’s profile grew on international tours and with the release of his first LP Polyhymnia. He signed to Nettwerk in 2017 and released his sophomore album Before The Bridge, which saw him reach new milestones – generating tens of millions of streams with prime real estate on coveted Spotify playlists like Your Favorite Coffeehouse, Acoustic Covers, and The Pulse of Americana, and spurring tours with Laura Marling, Tyler Childers, Passenger, Lee Ann Womack, and William Fitzsimmons.