James Vincent McMorrow: Post Tropical

Irish singer/songwriter James Vincent McMorrow made quite a splash with his beautifully folky 2010 debut, Early in the Morning. Four years later he returns with its follow up, Post Tropical, and while it is clear that he's not lost the ability to write an affecting, evocative, emotional song, he has stepped his game up with a slew of production tricks & musical surprises that proves that with the best artists you should always expect the unexpected.

McMorrow calls up his falsetto voice often on the new album & uses it like a seasoned R&B stylist, as on the album's opener, "Cavalier," which also features a funereal organ and the most realistic hand-claps (can hand-claps be honest?) ever recorded for a strange combination that works like a charm. Harp-like guitar (or is that an actual harp?), martial percussion & a weirdly non-cheesy keyboard back his cascading multi-tracked vocals on "Gold." Self-produced, McMorrow skillfully distributes the sonic elements throughout the mix, leading to an almost three-dimensional soundscape. Comparisons with Bon Iver may be apt, as both artists seem to thrive with their voluntary seclusion method of recording, but also with their ability to transcend genre and create new musical developments in their recording career.

-ERIC J. LAWRENCE

Track List:

1. Cavalier

2. The Lakes

3. Red Dust

4. Gold

5. All Points

6. Look Out

7. Repeating

8. Post Tropical

9. Glacier

10. Outside, Digging

Photo courtesy of the artist