Azita Youssefi has been making music in Chicago for 30 years. Thomas Comerford
The first time you see If U Die, the new video from Chicago singer-songwriter Azita Youssefi, it might take you a minute to realize that the colorful rock band you re watching is actually four matted-together versions of a single person. It s Youssefi in every role: the shaggy, smiling bassist, the bespectacled guitarist wearing a red realtor blazer, the blonde lead vocalist in blue eye shadow with a scarf at her neck, and the cool, denim-clad drummer hiding behind shades.
None of the characters reveals anything about Youssefi personally, except perhaps her expert sense of show. But the video is more than a visual joke; it s a reflection of the multifaceted musicianship she s developed in real life. On the new
Bandcamp
In October, Austin s brooding balladeer Bill Callahan teamed with equally enigmatic auteur Bonnie Prince Billy to release a surprise cover of Cat Stevens Blackness of the Night, with arrangements by Drag City labelmate Azita Youssefi. The singles have continued weekly since, each a new cover and collaboration, ranging from pop busters (Steely Dan s Deacon Blues with Bill MacKay; Billie Eilish s Wish You Were Gay with Sean O Hagan) to more obscure (Johnnie Frierson s Miracles filtered through Ty Segall; Lowell George s I ve Been the One with Meg Baird). Amid Lou Reed s Rooftop Garden and Hank Williams Jr. s OD d in Denver, the duo also rolls out a deep Jerry Jeff Walker fascination with takes on Little Bird, Letter Sung to Friends, I Love You, and Night Rider s Lament. The arrangements spiral eclectic and provocative, hung across the balancing act of Callahan s low, methodical intonations and Oldham s creaking high lonesome. –