Sunkissed debut of melancholic melodies and plaintive harmonies.
Sean McKinney’s follow-up as the Morning Tourist to his 2018 ‘Quiet Places’ is a quiet delight. Sitting somewhere between Villagers, Belle and Sebastian and Danny Wilson with its own pastoral, indie folk sensibility the album sits perfectly on top of a blissed-out afternoon in the summer sun. ‘Predictable‘ has a joyous, sparkly vibe that even includes whistling. There is a country Englishness that pervades in the instrumentation that could also remind of XTC as ‘Small Flame’ chimes its way between its verses. It’s a testament to McKinney’s versatility, as he plays all the instruments bar some bass and synths, and Tom Davis’ production that the album sounds so coherent and immediate.
Lead single ‘Honey‘ encapsulates everything they are trying to achieve – Bouncy, upbeat acoustic guitars bed a soulful lyric that heads towards harmony splashed choruses and the middle eight is a beautiful thing as everything stops and starts again. And it’s another earworm. The album is chock full of them, some feel very familiar but unnamable as anyone else’s. The closing ‘Perfect Sense‘ is a beautiful pop song that ploughs a magisterial, melancholic furrow with sparkling guitars and urgent bass hanging off every lyric, pulsing and keening as it heads towards the bittersweet climax.
This is a joyous slice of indie folk that should be investigated as here is an artist with the chops to go far. Get in on the debut.
