Petra

2019 release. Petra was written, produced, and performed by acclaimed multi-instrumentalist/ songwriter Anthony LaMarca, also known for his role as guitarist in The War On Drugs. Like so many Midwestern musicians before him, LaMarca left his beloved hometown of Youngstown, OH for Brooklyn but returned in 2014 and began work as The Building, often joined by his brother Angelo (guitar) and wife Megan (cello) on a series of EPs and albums including 2017s acclaimed Reconciliation released via Peppermint Records. Petra which shares its name with the LaMarcas beloved German Shepherd is a bare-boned, often brutally blunt, new work from a gifted musician-songwriter forced by fate to confront lifes hardest truths and consequences. LaMarca had just begun recording at Youngstowns Peppermint Productions when a spell of intense back pain led to his being diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma. Originally, LaMarca was diagnosed in the middle of making Reconciliation. He immediately started treatment, which brought the disease into complete remission. His disease relapsed last year while in the middle of making Petra. The experience inspired a second meaning to the albums title, the acronym P-E-T-R-A, or Peaces Eternal Truth Renews All. Moreover, LaMarcas physical struggle has resulted in the most powerful work of The Buildings still-growing canon, a vivid series of deeply personal songs such as Purifer and the album opener Transformed, made even more impactful through strikingly simple arrangements and raw, heartfelt performance.