My Girl The River has planted their third album in left field enticing listeners to cerebrally stretch their outlook. Space in its many forms is explored as Kris Wilkinson Hughes pinpoints the power of a simple structure to a significant song. The dozen tracks surface from an extended period showing meaningful albums evolve at their own pace. It is a record of mood and fermentation, perhaps evoking one of the themes explored, namely nature becoming the new social media.
No quick fix is detected and time in its most metronomic form eases in the moment when the record clicks, It may take several plays, and lying in the deep cut section, but a melodious soothing to a gentle sound merges well with curious messages seeping out of engaging lyrics.
Songs About Space is an antidote to a frantic world. A sprinkling of poetic dreaming exploiting amenable openings in busy lives. Its entity enables space for a raft of individual conclusions. There will be a natural gravitation for many to ‘The Breakdown of John Joe’; the album’s Brandi Carlile moment.
Kris Wilkinson Hughes comes across as an intuitive and perceptive songwriter. Narrow lanes are sonically followed with assorted musical assistance creating extra layers to expand the listening experience.
In the world of independent music, albums like this are in for the long haul constantly called upon for promotion to repay time invested, hence little room for throwaway content. A substantive album will carry My Girl The River forward in choppy waters.
