Blues Matters!

Having your own studio during a pandemic has been a productive period for a prolific artist like Steve Dawson as he recorded three albums worth of material. The first record release from this period was his recent roots release Gone, Long Gone which mixed songs and instrumentals touching on folk and blues influences. This second album is entirely instrumental, and it creatively explores a deep terrain of soundscapes. Spectral sonics abound as Cozy Corner opens this relaxed musical ride with pedal steel spookily overlaying an alt-country journey evoking desert plains as it ventures further as do most of the songs on this beguiling release. The pedal steel solo on Burnt End is all grace and guile and it leads once again on Twig Bucket with nifty guitar picking in support. Ethereal tones evoking the soundtrack of a beautifully shot country film yet to be made are at the core of this album. As a musician/producer Dawson has complete freedom to roam around his musical mind and experiment with sounds and this phantomtastic collection of eleven tracks is the mesmeric result. The funky feel to Ol’ Brushy has the unmistakable flavours of The Meters, and a woozy cover of The Beach Boys You Still Believe In Me fits tightly within the overall atmospheric recorded delights. The aforementioned Twig Bucket and Burnt End along with That’s How It Goes In The Relax Lounge is the compositional consequences of Dawson’s experiences in Memphis during the mixing of this album at the legendary Sam Phillips Recording Studio. As the final track Whirlwind spins out it’s hard not to resist playing this enigmatic recording repeatedly. - PAUL DAVIES