Finally Free
New West, 2018
8/10
One of the most prolific and eclectic artists in today’s indie-rock scene, when you listen to a Daniel Romano album you’re as likely to hear punk rock as you are country, and Finally Free, his 8th album in 8 years, lands somewhere in the middle with folk ideas coming through in his always very literate delivery.
“Empty Husk” starts the listen with gentle acoustic guitar as Romano’s soft and expressive vocals are complemented by an orchestral backdrop, and “All The Reaching Trims” continues the thoughtfulness with intricate guitar work as a dreamy quality enters the bare, folky atmosphere.
In the middle, “Between The Blades Of Grass” benefits greatly from playful percussion as retro pop ideas enter the highly melodic setting, while “Rhythmic Blood” indeed offers firm rhythm and some classic rock nods, too.
At the end, “Gleaming Sects Of Aniram” shows the depth of Romano’s vocal prowess as he covers much nostalgic territory, and “There’s Beauty In The Vibrant Form” exits the listen with some retro psychedelia ideas tossed in the unclassifiable formula.
Romano wrote everything here and played the majority of it, even recording it himself on a four track cassette tape. Often pointing towards the British Invasion, his jangly approach here is far more basic than the other 2 records he released in 2018, but it’s no less interesting and, as per usual, a bit perplexing. Best to try and not decipher Romano’s eccentric vision and just enjoy the psyche-folk creativity of Finally Free.
Travels well with: Corb Lund- Cover Your Tracks; Aaron Lee Tasjan- Karma For Cheap