Weatherboy
Employing guest musicians working
alongside them like no less than Grass Harp’s iconic guitarist Phil Keaggy,
multi-instrumentalist Ragnar Rosinkranz and artist John Walquist ten song debut
collection as Weatherboy ranks among the most compelling debuts in a commercial
genre over the last five years. Let’s be honest however – despite the melody,
glossy surfaces, and vocal beauty exhibited here, there’s very little that
you’ll hear on Top 40 radio. Weatherboy has musical muscle to bring to bear as
well as a sense of personal mission not campaigning for any cause but that of
communicating their inner most thoughts to the audience in all its forms. The
lyrics are an underrated part of the overall package – they are rather personal
in nature and, thus, retain a little obscurity, but they communicate through
image in such an impactful way they enhance their musical landscapes.
Everything here is framed for maximum effect.
When you hear the vocals boasting about
the good thing they’ve found in the opener song “Got a Good Thing”, it doesn’t
come off as ham-fisted or insincere and listeners experience a similar effect
with the second song “Great Great Life”. These two opening songs practically
demand to be taken as a tandem and, having done so, they make a marvelous
impact thanks to how well and unpredictably they weave brass, guitar, and
rhythm section playing into a fluid and hard-hitting whole. “Riding on the
Wind” is cut from a different cloth. Weatherboy temper their more pronounced
pop inclinations in favor of something much more atmospheric and understated in
comparison to earlier performances. The variety of colors at their disposal
doesn’t sound readily exhaustible/ :Some more cynical listeners might be
immediately suspicious of a song entitled “Good Morning LA”, but the duo’s aim
is true as they pour out with a good natured song dedicated to the City of
Angels. There’s more than a little melancholy coming out of this track belied
by a friendly, good natured vocal. “Bennett” has a number of impressive musical
ideas and some truly gut-wrenching and inspired vocal passages on an album
brimming with such moments.
“Eva” is nearly pure unadulterated folk
given only a slight pop spin thanks to the vocal and its evocative modern
production. It seems outright simple compared to “All Your Fault”, a raw yet
expertly dispatched meditation on competing emotions that the duo gets over
quite nicely with some memorable contributions from Phil Keaggy. It sets up the
album’s final tracks in a decisive way. “Home Fire” and “Full Bloom” are,
largely, low key affairs, but the latter tune is particularly effective as a
closer and the marriage of piano and voice alone stands in sharp and remarkable
contrast with the album’s earlier performances. Weatherboy is a remarkable
project by any standard, but the fact they are coming out of the gates with
such quality and intelligence to burn suggests they may have remarkably
brilliant dawns ahead of them as a partnership. This is an exceptional debut.
Wayne Toole
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