Two top notch albums in the last three years and a new one
in the can. Surely most artists will settle for that scenario, but not Michael
McDermott. Reflect for a few moments and realise there are still a further
twelve songs floating around in your head demanding some outage. It is of good
fortune for many fans out there that these vagrant songs were plucked from the
ether as they have morphed into yet another provocative release from a
singer-songwriter hell bent on pouring every sinew into his craft. Cleverly
collecting these songs under the album title ORPHANS, is just another smart
move as McDermott creatively cashes in on this rich vein of form.
This record did get a US release earlier in the year, but
its mid-April UK bow does tie in with a disappointingly short run of dates on
our isles in May. Compensation that these barely head out of London is
delivered in the sumptuous quality of material flowing from a record aching to be
heard.
While experiencing a Michael McDermott show in the flesh is a monumental
experience for those who engage with a touch of passion, wrapping your ears
around the recordings pulls up a close second.
The twelve songs that would not go away are all in the usual
format of solo McDermott compositions, fired up by a stonking extolling of folk
rock and served for a mixed palate in terms of straight rockers and some with
more tender overtones. Although formed from an urban background, there is a
heartland streak to the sounds and frequent leanings in the direction of The
Boss would not be a too distant assertion. Opening track ‘Tell Tale Heart’ and popular ‘first among equals’ candidate ‘The Wrong Side of Town’ upheld this
point of view and are as good a starting points as any to shed some light on
the album.
On a record where we call in on several cities likely to have
played a part in McDermott’s colourful life, ‘Sometimes When It Rains in Memphis’ probably tips the balance as
the summit moment, with ‘Los Angeles, a
Lifetime Ago’ settled nicely in the supporting cast. Whether you buy into
the pumped up rousing moments like ‘Givin’
Up the Ghost’ or wallow in the gentler or, at least, less frantic offerings
like ‘The Last Thing I Ever Do’ or ‘Black Tree, Blue Sky’ rich pickings are
aplenty.
Weighing in at fifty-three minutes, ORPHANS is in the realm
of a meaty effort and as we have come to expect from his solo outings and work
with The Westies format, an avalanche of industrious words goes a long way to
define what Michael McDermott does.
Musically, the album is in conventional territory and it
would not be truly hailed as a folk rock record without a blast of harmonica
that is duly found here on ‘Meadowlark’.
Singer-songwriter makes a valiant stab at defining this artist, but is simply
an understatement to how the vulnerabilities of one individual seek sanctuary in
the body of an art form.
Tough as nails, pumped up and tub-thumping poetry are phrases
jumping off the page as ORPHANS sinks in as a group of songs no longer
possessing a homeless status. We know there is more to come, but for the moment
Michael McDermott has turned out another gem, and complaints are absent from this
direction.
www.michael-mcdermott.com
