Episode 181: David Luning

David Luning and his band are earning their accolades in the best way possible - simply by being good at what they do and by working hard. After high school, Luning left his hometown in Northern California and set out to study film scoring at Boston's prestigious Berklee College of Music. Things were going just fine until he happened to hear a John Prine record at a college party. Prine's seemingly effortless, enigmatic and elegantly simple songwriting style was a personal epiphany for Luning, and it set him on an entirely new tack. After convincing his parents that he needed to drop out of school to pursue this new career, Luning leaned hard into the craft of writing and performing. It wasn't long before he'd assembled a band, released an album and hit the road. That self-released first record, Just Drop On By, put him on the radar of listeners and music supervisors alike, and Luning's music began to land placements in movies and TV shows. All the while, Luning and his stalwart band were logging miles playing shows across the country, raising their profile and getting out in front of even more new fans. The beginning of 2017 finds Luning poised to release his sophomore album, Restless, and the record is a step forward in both writing and performing skill. After a quick spin, it's evident that Luning shares some of his mentor's approach; his songs - like Prine's - are delivered in a deceivingly simple style that comes across as unadorned truth. Luning's melodies are catchy and hummable, and not a syllable or guitar lick is wasted. It's a refreshing and mature listen in a world of overly-quantized and auto-tuned artists all desperately and loudly vying for attention.