Rose's Pawn Shop

Rose's Pawn Shop is an Americana, rock, folk and bluegrass band from Los Angeles, California. Their debut album The Arsonist was released in May 2006. The band tours several times each year throughout the United States but has recently put a hold on touring to record a new album coming 2013.

On their new album Gravity Well, the fiercely independent young quintet known as Rose's Pawn Shop deliver a rousing, honest set that demonstrates exactly why this multi-talented, multi-instrumental L.A.-based fivesome has quickly risen from humble D.I.Y. origins to national notoriety, winning a fiercely loyal fan base in the process.

The 12 new tunes that comprise Gravity Well—produced by Ted Hutt, renowned for his work with the likes of the Dropkick Murphys, Gaslight Anthem and the Old Crow Medicine Show—make it clear why Rose's Pawn Shop has earned such a fervent following. The band's catchy, anthemic songcraft channels the raw emotional power of America's folk, country and bluegrass traditions and puts them through a modern filter, creating timelessly resonant music.

Frontman Paul Givant's heartfelt, engaging songwriting surveys such time-honored subjects as heartache, loss, regret and redemption, echoing centuries of musical tradition while still sounding wholly contemporary. Despite the lyrics' often-dark subject matter, the music is consistently uplifting, thanks to the musicians' infectious instrumental interplay and soaring three- and four-part harmonies. The ensemble makes innovative use of banjo, fiddle, mandolin and upright bass, while maintaining an edgy swagger.

"I think that this music exists on two different levels," notes singer, guitarist and main songwriter Givant, adding, "The songs are passionate and emotional, and sometimes sad and heartbreaking. But at the same time, the energy of the music makes you want to get up and dance and release all of that pent-up energy."

Rose's Pawn Shop's musical and emotional depth is apparent on such lyrically and melodically compelling new tunes as "What Were You Waiting For?," "Staring At the Door" and "On the Brink," which merge equal amounts of country twang and punk adrenaline. Meanwhile, gentler numbers like "Go Get Gone," "Stay All Night" and the cinematic title track explore more introspective territory, and a memorable reading of the Dock Boggs standard "Country Blues" affirms the group's instinctive understanding of its vintage influences.

Growing up in the 1990s, Paul Givant absorbed a wide array of music, yet he was drawn most deeply to traditional folk and bluegrass, and inspired by the music's ability to illuminate the tragedies and triumphs of everyday life. The influence of those genres loomed large when Givant began writing songs himself.

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