Live Video: Damien Jurado @ Capitol Hill Block Party

photo by Steven Dewall

It’s a testament to the power of Damien Jurado’s music that perhaps the most unassuming of the of the fourteen bands to perform live for KEXP in the Caffe Vita Bean Room during the Capitol Hill Block Party would draw one of the largest crowds. And for good reason: for the past fifteen years, Jurado has been releasing albums and EPs of some of the most emotionally affecting music to come out of the Northwest. Mostly narrative, often confessional, sometimes spare, other times lush, usually plaintive, and typically understated, his songs will hit you like a ton of bricks when you least expect them to. Although he wasn’t officially performing during the Capitol Hill Block Party, Jurado took the time while recuperating from a solid month-long tour, to bring these four songs -- including two brand new songs, one of which he wrote that very morning! -- for this exclusive acoustic session for KEXP: