By JAMIE GRISWOLD
MyNorthwest.com

Christopher Mansfield, aka Fences, is pleased the wait is nearly over for the release of his debut album.

“It’s been done and mastered for awhile and it’s a hard thing to have that and not show it to people, so that was an exercise in patience, but we pretty much wanted to find a way to put it out properly.”

The Sept. 28 release date will likely garner more attention for the Seattle-based musical act set to begin a U.S. tour Sept. 24.

As they head out on tour, Mansfield told TBTL host Luke Burbank the group doesn’t plan on letting any distractions get the better of them.

“We’re all really driven and positive, and we don’t want anything to get in the way of the goal, whether it’s beer or whatever.”

The alcohol issue may be becoming an indelible part of Mansfield’s image, but he says there’s no confusion about who the source is.

“I can complain, ‘Oh why do people know?’ but I sing about all these things. In a way it’s like a confessional,” says Mansfield. “It’s kind of a new thing for me, when you write music and then personal things kind of get tied in, and I think in a way I ask for it, by how personal the music is. So I think people want to know about the person that they’re listening to, which is totally understandable.”

Mansfield’s intensely personal songs, likened to having “stumbled upon someone’s journal,” by Sound on the Sound writer Tyler Kalberg, have gained the attention of many, including Sara Quin, of Canadian indie band Tegan and Sara, who offered to produce the record.

Mansfield says the simplicity of the songs is what he thinks people respond to most.

“I think the album has a lot of little hooks that are very simple and you feel like it’s something you’ve heard before,” Mansfield says. “It’s almost like nursery rhymes for adults or something. I think it’s just very comforting, and it’s simple, and it’s easy to wrap your brain around.”

Mansfield’s debut album is available for pre-order at Sadcastle.com, and will be in stores September 28th.

Follow Jamie Griswold on twitter @jamiegriswold

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