Groupies of Los Angeles, you should kind of be ashamed of yourselves. There was a listening party last night for G. Love's new album, Fixin to Die, at the Solar Powered Plastic Plan–a tucked away little recording studio in Larchmont! It was an intimate party, security was loose, wine flowed, well, like wine. Isn't this the kind of thing you're supposed to sneak into?

But you didn't, and the 21-year-old version of myself who once had a mini-sweatshirt devoted exclusively to G. Love signatures was pretty disappointed in you. Here's what you missed:

Fixin to Die is G. Love's eleventh album, and it makes a departure towards bluegrass he's only hinted at in previous songs. It was produced at Echo Mountain Recording, an old church-turned-studio in Asheville, NC. The large space aided in capturing the reverberation of every foot tap, and the richness of the slow, sexy harmonica moan.

Last night, after the obligatory tacos and cupcakes, G. Love finally took to a tiny stage in front of shoulder-to-shoulder 30-somethings to give us a live-preview of his new sound.

He played the title track, as well as the album's opening number “Milk and Sugar,” “Home,” a ballad about being on the road and “Katie Miss,” a tender love letter to his dog. Here's a snippet of that piece:

The tiny crowd yelled for more and we got a quick dose of “Baby's Got Sauce” out of him. We can't imagine he's not tired of playing that song, but nonetheless, it was his encore go-to.

But here's the point: G. Love is a sex monger. He always has been. But unlike, say, John Mayer, who we suspect only writes love songs because they do the trick, G. Love's music and lyrics are infused with an authentic soul – one that's not lost in this newly country-fied version of himself.

Fixin to Die drops Feb. 22nd.

Ladies, where you at?

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