| 'Go On! Roll that Old Boulder Away' is a simply outstanding collection from the York ensemble. | | York songwriter Rowan Evans is in enviable form, producing some of the best pieces of songwriting going right now. His new album 'Go On! Roll That Old Boulder Away' was released last week under his musical project Rowan and Friends, in which he performs his songs with said friends as backing musicians. Opener 'Poker Night' is immediately arresting with its high stakes (pun unintended), soul-baring lyrics, and from the moment the band kick in, a phone-demo drawl substituted for full-band high definition, the ensuing forty minutes (ideal album length) are consistently engrossing and impressive. | | For me, an adherent of lyricism whose measure of songwriting amounts to what the music adds to the lyrics and what the lyrics bring out in the music, this album contains several of the best-written songs in recent memory. There are no misses, but 'One In Eight Billion' and 'The Season of Longing' are among those that stand out as particular highlights. The latter will further delight superfans for keeping up the tradition, established on debut 'Rock 'n' Roll Superpowers', of the epic emotional closer packed with Rowan and Friends easter eggs. Here, metaphors about songwriting, religion, love and incarceration are wrenched from personal connections with alternating measures of charm and unease. The absolute high point, however, is undeniably 'You Will Never Get That Feeling Back', a masterful reflection on the whole enterprise of human society, charted through religious mythology, human history and more recent incidents of music history, from the writing of 'It's All Over Now Baby Blue' to Joni Mitchell's controversial and often conveniently forgotten use of blackface in the late 1970s. These latter images suggest the outlook of a songwriter profoundly of our current age, accessing a revisionist history of popular music through subreddits and meme pages, a perspective also indicated by a line in 'One in Eight Billion' about 'arguing with fools and false friends on the internet'. With a delicate yet unaffected balance of candour, humour and wry self-awareness, this album constitutes a real and unique perspective elucidated over its ten songs. | | An array of musical influences makes itself felt across this record, which mostly sits between slacker indie, classic singer-songwriter and country & western influences. An adherent of country masters like Emmylou Harris and Ernest Tubb, Evans employs the straightforward yet endlessly wise perspective of country songwriting throughout this record. The country influence is emphasised by occasional pedal steel croons from Robbie Carman (also of Crazy Paving, Lilo and Baggio) and a duet with Arkansas-based artist Jude Brothers on 'One In Eight Billion'. The album also features the latest release from the series of Evans' numbered 'Country Love Songs' (#6) as well as his inaugural 'Country Hat Song' (#1) and with closer 'The Season of Longing' builds to a pitch of Southern Gothic which critically incorporates something of Nick Cave. | | Incorporating these older classic influences, the album sits most naturally in alignment with the lineage of classic indie rock, justifying the association with its brilliant idiosyncratic lyrical perspectives and fuzzed-out, guitar-driven warmth. While Pavement were invoked in spirit on the title track of his previous album, this album's most direct namecheck comes in the form of the strange scuttling 'David Berman's Apartment'. Evans has also acknowledged the distinct influence of Neutral Milk Hotel on the maximalist 'I've Been Thinking About Jesus', which is driven by the clarion call performed by Anna Bailey. | | Bailey, along with Carman, is part of the strong ties which connect this album between Rowan and Friends' base in York and the burgeoning south London indie scene represented in numbers here. Joseph Futák, also known for his solo work as well as production work with Tapir!, Piglet, Lilo and Baggio, is on production duties, while further contributions come from Emmett Cruddas (also of Baggio, plus Dead Slow Hoot) and Frankie Distani (Kaspar Hauser, Dimensions). It is spiritually deeply appropriate that the London leg of the upcoming tour is at the Ivy House, that's all I'll say. Yet along with these collaborations from further afield, this record is also the latest in Evans' long list of contributions to the York music scene too. The name Rowan and Friends was conceived in anticipation of the revolving list of collaborators who have been involved in this project. Featured here are familiar 'friends' Ollie Howland, Dan Lucas, Tom Burgess and Adam Holmes, who have all served long stints in Evans' live band. The album also features debut contributions from newer additions to the live setup, vocalist Cordelia Hobbes and accordion-player Ben Crosthwaite, as well as artwork by fellow York musician Harry Clowes (also of NAME and more recently releasing under his own name). Evans' contribution to York's music scene over the past few years has been immense, including organisation of open mics, regular folk nights, DIY festivals and regular gig promotion. It is heartening to see how some of that is represented back on this collection. | | Ultimately, this work is all an extension of Evans' own commitment to music, from which his own work has enormously benefitted. A prolific songwriter, this collection represents some of the best of his work to date, reflecting a dedication to the craft and a knowledge of where to bend the rules and where they will help you out. It is a truly impressive and endlessly rewarding collection. | | | | |
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