Jeffrey Lewis

Jeffrey Lewis

Jeffrey Lewis is an American singer-songwriter and comic book artist from New York City. He is associated with anti-folk and writes in a style that often uses dense, literate lyrics, mixing bleak subject matter with wit and a sense of optimism. His songs frequently refer to New York locations and landmarks, including the Lower East Side, Williamsburg, the FDR Drive and the East River.

Background

Lewis is born in New York in 1975 and grows up on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. He attends State University of New York at Purchase College and graduates in 1997. His final thesis focuses on Alan Moore’s graphic novel Watchmen.

Recording career

Lewis signs to the British label Rough Trade in 2001. His first official album is The Last Time I Did Acid I Went Insane, followed in 2003 by It’s the Ones Who’ve Cracked That the Light Shines Through. In 2005 he releases City & Eastern Songs in the UK. All three albums include his brother Jack Lewis, who writes and sings several of the songs.

In 2007 he releases 12 Crass Songs on Rough Trade in Europe. The album consists of 12 covers of the British anarchist punk band Crass and features contributions from Helen Shriner, John Kessel, Jack Lewis, David Beachamp, Raphi Gottesman and Nan Turner.

Collaborations and related projects

Lewis performs and collaborates with fellow New York anti-folk singers Kimya Dawson and Diane Cluck. He also records with several named group line-ups, including Jeffrey Lewis & The Junkyard, Jeffrey Lewis & The Jrams, Jeffrey Lewis & The Voltage, Jeffrey Lewis and The Jitters, Jeffrey Lewis & The Deposit Returners and Jeffrey Lewis & Los Bolts.