Daffo, the project of Brooklyn-based artist Gabi Gamberg (they/them), announces they have signed to Concord Records and shares an imagined rendition of their breakout hit “Poor Madeline” featuring the Portland-based folk artist Searows.

With a poetic specificity that cuts right to the heart, the Brooklyn-based artist speaks an unfiltered truth about all that sets them apart from the wider world, exploring everything from shame and self-loathing to misplaced affection and the chaos of living with an overactive brain. As a kid growing up in the Philadelphia suburbs, the musician otherwise known as Gabi Gamberg first started writing songs after taking up guitar at age 9, then later shaped their intimate yet frenetic sound by playing countless DIY shows in backyards and basements.

In creating the new version of “Poor Madeline,” Daffo worked with producer Philip Weinrobe (Adrianne Lenker, Deerhoof) and musicians like guitarist Adam Brisbin (Buck Meek, Jolie Holland), adding a lovely intensity to their lived-in reflection on feeling hopelessly adrift. “I wrote ‘Poor Madeline’ when I was 17 and having a tough time with my mental health,” says Gamberg, who penned the song as a student at Idyllwild Arts Academy (a residential arts high school in Southern California). “I was also dealing with all these stomach problems and kept thinking about the part in the children’s book Madeline where Madeline’s appendix bursts, so I decided to use her name in the lyrics.” Mastered by Heba Kadry (Björk, Sufjan Stevens) and mainly recorded live at Weinrobe’s Brooklyn studio, the update of “Poor Madeline” unfolds in luminous lap-steel tones, spellbinding violin melodies, delicate piano work, and an aching cascade of harmonies from Daffo and Searows—ultimately making for an exquisite new addition to Daffo’s catalog.

Daffo is hitting the road this fall supporting illuminati hotties on a full US tour. All dates below.

TOUR DATES

08/16 – Westerly, RI – Paddy’s Beach Club*

08/17 – Lowell, MA – Lowell Summer Music Series*

09/25 – Santa Ana, CA – Constellation Room^

09/26 – San Diego, CA -Casbah^

09/28 – San Francisco, CA – The Chapel^

09/29 – Sacramento, CA – Goldfield Trading Post^

10/01 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios^

10/02 – Vancouver, BC – The Biltmore Cabaret^

10/03 – Seattle, WA – Neumos^

10/04 – Boise, ID – Neurolux^

10/05 – Salt Lake City, UT – Kilby Court^

10/06 – Denver, CO -Larimer Lounge^

10/08 – St. Paul, MN -Turf Club^

10/09 – Milwaukee, WI – Vivarium^

10/10 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall^

10/11 – Hamtramck, MI – The Sanctuary^

10/12 -Toronto, ON -Longboat Hall^

10/13 – Montreal, QC – Cabaret Foufs^

10/15 – South Burlington, VT – Higher Ground Showcase Lounge^

10/16 – Cambridge, MA – The Sinclair^

10/17 – Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church^

10/18 – New York, NY -Bowery Ballroom^

10/19 – Washington, DC – Black Cat^

10/20 – Durham, NC – Motorco Music Hall^

10/22 – Nashville, TN – The End^

10/23 – Atlanta, GA -The Masquerade (Purgatory)^

10/26 – Dallas, TX – Club Dada^

10/25 – New Orleans, LA – Siberia^

10/27/24 – Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall (Upstairs)^

10/29 – Santa Fe, NM – Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery^

10/30 -Phoenix, AZ – The Rebel Lounge^

11/01 – Los Angeles, CA – Teragram Ballroom^

* with Chadwick Stokes & The Pintos

^ with Illumanti Hotties

Photo Courtesy: Sam Penn