Points Of Light
Sonic Peach, 2023
9/10
The Canadian guitarist and singer-songwriter Noah Zacharin returns with a 9th album, where a team of 9 musicians accompany him across the 11 diverse songs.
“Ten Tons Of Road” opens the listen with meticulous finger picked acoustic guitar alongside Zacharin’s poetic singing, and “17 Minute” follows with Burke Carroll's gorgeous pedal steel complementing Zacharin’s expressive and eloquent pipes.
Moving deeper into the listen, “So Much Work To Be Done” pays homage to Guy Clark with much sublime intimacy from the soft guitar, while “Tom Morrow” is a solo acoustic delivery that’s full of vivid imagery via the graceful singing.
Near to the end, “Something Like A River” is a brief flatpicking tune that’s instrumental and melodic, and “Been A Long Day” exits with an orchestral presence thanks to Drew Jurecka’s stirring strings that embraces both beauty and sadness.
Zacharin and company seamelessly shift in mood and tone with fluidity, and the unparalleled attention to lyricism and sincere musicianship makes for a very memorable listen.
Travels well with: Julian Taylor- Beyond The Reservoir; Lunar Bloom- Running Deep