When MG Boulter is operating in the shadows he is enabling others to shine with his subtly crafted musicianship and deft contributions to projects fully appreciative of his input. On the other hand there are moments when he moves from the sidelines to centre stage and commands an audience to sit up and take note. He did this superbly in 2016 with the strong album WITH WOLVES THE LAMBS WILL LIE and now five years later the thoroughly engaging and conceptual CLIFFTOWN throws an intriguing and glowing light on MG Boulter the performing singer-songwriter.
On the back of 2021 albums by Jack Cade and Morning Bride, this is another record strongly defined by the fascinating facade of an English seaside town. Without too much implicitness, we are informed that Clifftown is a fictional place based on Southend-on-Sea, a place close to the heart and life of Essex-based multi facetted artist MG Boulter. From this starting point, the songwriting tackles subjects poised at contrasting angles and through alternate lens providing a curious insight into what exists on the exterior and interior of a fading facade.
By the time the dozen tracks take their leave on the A127, the listener is well versed on themes such as a subterranean escape in 'Nights at the Aquarium', the plight of the homeless in 'The Slow Decline' and and in a different stratosphere 'Fan of the Band' acting as a tribute to the local pub rock scene that once spawned acts such as Dr, Feelgood and Eddie and the Hot Rods'
You can quite easily place MG Boulter on the edge of the folk scene, capable of mixing with the core and the alt. In the past he has worked with diverse acts as Simone Felice (plus the Duke and the King project) and Emily Portman and Coracle. One similarity spiralling out of the opening tracks is a likeness to Blue Rose Code in a spate of Essex meets Edinburgh. 'Midnight Movies' is the said track and peers out to a town at night. This is immediately followed by one of the albums's standout moments when Boulter sinks a little into indie-rock mode to deliver the acutely observational song 'Soft White Belly'.
CLIFFTOWN is a fascinating collection of songs full of threads and a deep seeking desire to dig deep and explore. MG Boulter uses the breadth of his craft and guile to curate an album absorbing in reception and accomplished in presence. Whatever he puts his creative mind and talented skills to usually reap rewards, and this assertion rings true in an album rich in such quality.
