MJ Lenderman has shared “Knockin,” his follow-up single to last month’s “Rudolph” and second song as ANTI- Records newest signee. “I was spending a lot of time watching John Daly videos and came across a rendition he does of Dylan’s ‘Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,’” Lenderman explained in a press release for his latest track. “Daly’s version includes an extra verse about golfing. My ‘Knockin’ became a staple of the MJ Lenderman & The Wind live set and it felt like a good idea to re-record it professionally.”
The track opens on the lighthearted anecdote of seeing Daly cover the Bob Dylan classic before swooning into a classic Americana slow jam, with Lenderman telling his love how she gave him wings and how he used them to take flight, soon finding himself knocking at heaven’s door. Between his bare, dynamic vocals and soulfully deep fried riffs, “Knockin” once again delivers on the coming-of-age, senior summer feeling that fans flock to him for.
“Knockin” was written between the recording and release of Lenderman’s 2022 acclaimed album Boat Songs. Originally, the track appeared on a self-recorded EP, but was later fleshed out with blankets of fuzz guitar and southern slide pedal steels at Drop of Sun Studios in his hometown of Asheville, North Carolina. The song will appear on an upcoming 7’’ single alongside “Rudolph,” with the vinyl currently available for pre-order and set for release later this fall.
Preorder the “Rudolph” single here and listen to “Knockin” below.