Robert Vincent’s first new music in three years is something that Americana fans in the UK and beyond will be delighted by. Opening with his warm, rhythmic strum, ‘The Insider’ is gorgeously layered and beautifully produced. Vincent delivers a smooth, melodic vocal, highlighting the song’s intriguing lyrics. He says of the theme: “‘The Insider’, who can you trust? In an age of the despot, the dark, unknown, underhand influence, that casts a shadow over all our lives, who am I to you?”
The accompanying video stars well-known British actor David Morrissey, who is a fellow Scouser and a big fan of Vincent’s music. On featuring in the video, Morrissey says: “I do a radio show on Boogaloo Radio with my son Gene and every year we do a roving mic show from the Black Deer Festival. I checked Robert out and immediately loved his sound. We hit it off backstage afterwards, sharing music we loved and vowed to keep in touch, which we did. When he asked me to be in the video of ‘The Insider’ I jumped at the chance. He is a great talent and it’s a privilege to be part of this latest release.” Robert Vincent was, indeed, absolutely fantastic at Black Deer and it is no surprise that he won Morrissey over with his performance. The visual back and forth between Vincent and Morrissey is engrossing; the actor displays all his skills, conveying a great range of emotions through his facial expressions and body language, before Vincent dons the mask of the clown, hiding his true self behind this new persona. It’s a well-realised concept, brilliantly acted, moodily atmospheric and artistically shot.
Vincent’s last album, the award-winning ‘In this Town You’re Owned’, covered broad social and political themes. However, his forthcoming album, ‘Barriers’, is a more personal , intimate collection, based around Vincent’s own experiences and inner-reflections. As the lyrical content looks inwards, the sound is more expansive and ambitious. The new material might just be his best work yet, which is quite a feat from one of the UK’s most respected Americana singer-songwriters. Vincent says: “I’m learning how to lower my barriers and have made a more personal album than ever before.” It feels like a long time since Vincent won the Bob Harris Emerging Artist award at the Americana Music Association UK awards in 2016 and we can look forward to this new direction in Vincent’s fourth studio album. In the meantime, absorb ‘The Insider’ and the terrific performances of both Robert Vincent and David Morrissey in the video.
With just a couple more dates this year, there’s still time to catch Vincent live, trying out the new material before the album release in 2024 – details here. A forceful presence on stage with a collection of great songs in his repertoire, Robert Vincent is one of the best live performers around. Check him out if you can. In the meantime, enjoy ‘The Insider’.
