Hey, Jeremy Enigk fans: Good things come to those who wait

"You do your own thing in your own time. You should be proud."

— Captain America,

"Easy Rider"

Doing his own thing in his own time, Jeremy Enigk is the kind of person who drives the recording industry crazy. The guitar-playing singer is a stunning talent, yet hard to categorize — they hate that, those record execs. He is constantly evolving, refusing to stay in one place — they hate that, too, these lovers of sameness.

Doing his own thing in his own time, he works on his own schedule — and who wants a worker bee like that? He's cryptic and deals with spirituality — running counter to the superficial tastes of "the industry."

He doesn't really fit with the crowd, so Enigk is releasing his next album by himself. Like Seattle heavyweights Pearl Jam, he feels he has a strong following (though hardly PJ-size) to carry him, without relying on a label.

"I think I have a big enough fan base that, if they buy the records, I can make a decent living," he says, in explaining his founding Lewis Hollow Recordings (www.lewishollowrecordings.com).

A slightly groggy but cheerful Enigk offers a visitor to his Lake City home a glass of wine, then a sneak peek at his in-the-works album — which his fans are quiveringly anticipating. Judging by a handful of songs, they won't be disappointed, as Seattle's former wunderkind is maturing into a rich, challenging artist, crafting sturdy foundations from which to launch his spectacular vocal flourishes.

He was still a teenager when Sub Pop signed Sunny Day Real Estate, which rode Enigk's voice and tantalizing lyrics to develop a cult following. Grunge was all the rage, back in 1992, but Enigk and SDRE were taking different angles — crafting ponderous, emotionally pitched songs that were at the forefront of what would be called "emo," and often-imitated.

The band had a stormy, on-again, off-again history before calling it quits for good (theoretically, at least) in 2000. Enigk, who had earlier released an intriguing solo album called "Return of the Frog Queen," then went on to form the Fire Theft with Sunny Day drummer William Goldsmith.

Enigk plans to do a second Fire Theft album, some day, but for now is wrapped up in his second solo album. Rather than Goldsmith, his long-time right-hand man, Enigk used five drummers on this album and a few bass players.

He thinks he'll call the new album "World Waits," fitting for his fans, although "I'm not sure if it encompasses the whole album."

Asked about the theme of this album, the slender, scruffy Enigk flashed a wry smile. "The theme is the same. It's always been the same thing to me — songs about love, God, friends ... "

In a second-floor bedroom-turned-studio, he plays a rough version of "Burn," which he said had a "scratch" (i.e., preliminary) vocal. "I did it in one take — this is the beast of the album."

He explains that he originally recorded a version of it for "Frog Queen," but his producer accidentally hit "rewind" and erased it. The song is essentially the same, but like its creator has evolved over the years — a new symphonic intro, for example. As the beat rises, Enigk tinkers with the Pro-Tools settings, then loses himself and begins singing along:

"Although I burn I am so cold ... "

"It'll be more intense, here," he says with a grimace, thinking of how much more work he needs to do on this song.

He next plays "River to Sea," which has a faint, Beach Boys feel, beginning with a chorus of vocals from Josh Myers, the co-producer. "River to sea/there we will be ... turn around your life is in your hands."

Enigk says "River to Sea" is his favorite song on the album. "It's about forgiveness — I shouldn't say that," he quickly checks himself, with a laugh. "People get mad." Trying to figure out the meanings of his intentionally equivocal songs has long been sport for his fans.

He then fiddles with the computer and cues up "Dare a Smile." "This is a favorite, too. The lyrics are straight out of my life."

"Dare a smile/I'm out of style

eyes red/voice half dead

heaven help the lords of my redemption

I need something new/to keep me going"

As "World Waits" begins, he says with a smile: "This is my love song to the world."

"World wait forever ... take the time/don't break my heart"

The enigkmatic (to steal a description by one of his fans) singer is a wild hybrid of beauty and rage; on his new album, he flashes back and forth between the two extremes, though perhaps with more control.

In March, Enigk and Myers were pulling all-nighters, rushing to complete the disc by the end of this month. That would give his business people time to promote it, prior to the Lollapalooza fest, which this year takes place Aug. 4-6 in Chicago.

His fans — fanatics, often — have been anxious since January of 2005, when he announced on myspace.com/thefiretheft that the Fire Theft was going on hiatus while he worked on his solo album.

Typical reaction on the message board:

This is truly glorious news! I enjoyed ROTFQ sooo much, and have often wondered if Mr. Enigk would ever grace us with an additional melodious triumph. My soul rejoices.

Those rejoicing souls have had to wait nearly a year-and-a-half, as Enigk does his own thing in his own time. The light is at the end of the tunnel for his fans, and the early listen suggests the wait will be more than worth it for them.

• Mike Johnson — former Dinosaur Jr. bass player, frequent Mark Lanegan collaborator — releases "Gone Out of Your Mind" on Tuesday (Up Records). This is his fifth solo album for one of Seattle's most underrated singers, often compared by critics to Townes Van Zandt and Leonard Cohen.

Johnson is backed on this album by Built to Spill players Brett Netson and Jim Roth.

Tom Scanlon: tscanlon@seattletimes.com