Detroit singer/songwriter Mike Ward will release his fourth album, Love Never Rests, on April 14, a follow-up from his 2022 project, Particles To Pearls.
Mike Ward has been a designer and creative director in the advertising world for the better part of 40 years. Since leaving the industry, he now creates lyrically dense folk songs, creating three albums and has reeceived several nominations and recognitions.
For his past three albums (“Particles to Pearls,” “The Darkness and The Light,” and “We Wonder.”), Ward has created music that is serene by nature.
Every aspect of instrumentation comes with a lulling sense of relaxation, often juxtaposed with lyrical content that examines the ups and downs associated with life.
For his new album, “Love Never Rests,” the folk artist revisits this strategy through 11 tracks. Which Ward defines as an “exploration of life, love, loss, as well as past, present, and future relationships.”
“Thematically, the idea is either love that is part of your life or that you’re searching for. The album is about love you lost or love you’re hoping the world can find more of. Love is thematically where this album sits,” Ward said. “I will be 69 In May, so I have a lot of perspective on life. And having friends who have had strokes, memory loss or health problems drives what I do.”
Ward explains that he crafted Love Never Rests through collaborations, conversations, and participation in various songwriting workshops and groups. “I know that the subject matter is heavy. I want to take personal stories but tell them in a way that would reach other people who have either experienced it in their own family or with a loved one.”
Produced by longtime collaborator David Roof, Ward states he brought numerous artists and musicians to help complete this album, including his daughter Emilia Ward, who appears on Smile, one of the final songs on the album.
“I record my tracks, my guitar, and my vocals. David and the other musicians have been remarkable about adapting to that,” Ward said. “ I enjoy the sound that we got by adding pieces to these recordings. I look at this album as an extension of ‘Particles to Pearls,’ but maybe a little more personal.”
Throughout the album, Ward treats listeners to pleasant piano melodies, soothing guitar riffs, and the occasional string harmony. And while Ward’s guitar skills are impressive, his voice steals the show with its beauty. It’s just as clear and melodic as his first album, which helped him rise to prominence in the Michigan folk scene and helped him earn a host of Detroit Music Award nominations.
While topics of this project include emotionally-heavy subjects like dementia and loss of loved ones, Ward states he wants others to finish this project feeling grateful for life.
“I want people to realize where you are, at every moment, and how to be thankful. How to be connected to people and feel deeply, whether pain from loss or joy from love or any situation. Just lean into it, and feel it,” Ward said.
Ward’s new album, “Love Never Rests,” will be released on all streaming platforms. For more information, you can find Ward on his website, psychosongs.com.
Antonio Cooper is a freelance journalist from Detroit, Michigan. His coverage of music festivals and interviews with local celebrities appeared in The E-Current Magazine, The Detroit Metro Times, XXL Magazine, RichMagDigital, The Ann Arbor Observer, and Pop Magazine.
