Spin this record once and you’ll be impressed. Spin it a
dozen times and layer upon layer of superior song writing talent will be revealed.
Quite remembering that Parker Millsap is just 21 years old can be a tough task
as his seasoned vocals and mature approach to music making belie someone at the
beginning of what should be a long and fruitful recording career. This self-titled
release is actually Parker’s second full length record but is packed full of
breakthrough qualities. Musically Parker calls at several ports along the way notably
blues, gospel, country, jazz and straight forward singer-song writing fare but
rarely lingers long enough to be typecast. What you do discover is that Parker
is adept at harnessing all that’s sirenic about roots instrumentation at its
combo best. When mixed with his compulsive lyrical musings, the whole album is
an edifying listening experience.
The Americana Music Association has already recognised Parker
as one of the genre’s emerging talents of the last year and UK fans will have a
brief glimpse of him as the opening act on Old Crow Medicine Show’s short tour.
However there is so much scope for Parker to follow in the footsteps of fellow
young Oklahoma based artists – John Fullbright and Samantha Crain – in cultivating
a sizable European following by extensive touring. The ten songs composed to
form this optimum offering will serve this mission well if it is on Parker’s
radar.
Religion played an important part in the upbringing of
Parker Millsap and the topic is a recurring theme throughout the album.
Although the spiritual distance between his Pentecostal background and the
present has grown wider, the topic and experiences prove a fertile source for
his song writing. Lead off track 'Old
Time Religion’ had recent exposure as a single release and possesses a haunting
explorative feel to it, in contrast to ‘Truck
Stop Gospel’ which has more lively rousing beat. However both songs take an
almost outside view of their subject with just a little irony in the latter.
While on the semi spiritual theme, ‘When
I Leave’, complete with harmonica interlude and demo presence, also touches
on the subject and houses one of Parker’s most impressive and non- clichéd lines
“When I leave maybe I’ll go to heaven. When I leave maybe I’ll go somewhere
else.”
Similarities to John Fullbright are liberally found
throughout the record, although vocally Parker generally has a more gravelly
and earthy tone. The twin tracks ‘Forgive
Me’ and ‘The Villain’ follow
Fullbright’s winning formula with the first aching in redemption and the second
enriched by a soaring verse segment. This latter song was also featured on the
OLD RELIGION EP and stakes a good claim to being the album’s standout track.
This is closely rivalled by ‘At the Bar’
which edges into country territory with a waltz-like sentiment and the killer
line “Melancholy melody that’s the place I belong.”
More sentiment follows in the ballad ‘Yosemite’, one of the dream locations Parker wants to take the subject
of the song when his winning ticket comes in. Like a couple of other tracks,
the input of horns is experimented with but mainly the sound of the record relies
on the trusted trio of guitars, fiddle and banjo. A nod to the blues is more
prevalent in the closing number where a grainy guitar sound accompanies ‘Land of the Red Man’, a curious and
cutting take on his home state with a final remark that it is “better than
Texas”. Of the remaining tracks, ‘Disappear’
is a steady number, while ‘Quite Contrary’
has a demo sound to it and a poetic lyrical make up set to traditional rhyme.
Parker Millsap’s second album is defined by an intuitive nature
to explore a variety of experiences, feelings and styles within a context of
the quintessential Mid-West songbook. Dive deep into this record and sunken
treasure will be found in the guise of an artist locked in for a successful
future.
www.parkermillsap.com
