The Crosswinds Of Kansas
Self-Released, 2022
9/10
Listen to The Crosswinds Of Kansas
Bill Scorzari made me a fan with 2017’s Through These Waves, and here the New Yorker returns with 13 originals that showcase his raw folklore and recruits players including Danny Mitchell, Ty Allison, and Will Kimbrough, plus many others.
“I-70 East” opens the listen with warm electric guitar and crisp drumming as Scorzari’s inimitable rasp enters the gritty yet tuneful climate, and “Inside My Heart” follows with intricate acoustic guitar and a poetic delivery of timeless folk song craft that embraces a Tibetan singing bowl, a claw-hammer banjo and a Native American flute.
“Not Should’ve Known” arrives near the middle, and illustrates just how much beauty Scorzari’s songwriting emits, and might just remind you of Iron & Wine’s greatest moments, while “A Ghost, My Hat And My Coat” moves quicker with some jam band qualities.
“Try, Try Again” lands closer to the end, and showcases much sublime intimacy in its hushed eloquence and subtle piano, and “Tryin’, Tryin’, Tryin’, Tryin’” exits the listen with a pair of flutes and spoken word entering the mysterious finish.
This is Scorzari’s 4th studio album, and each one is full of literate, creative and genuine sounds that parallels the greatness achieved by Dylan, Waits, Young and Cohen. If you haven’t familiarized yourself with his work yet, don’t wait any longer, cause it’s quite an alluring brand of delicacy.
Travels well with: M. Lockwood Porter- Communion In The Ashes; John Calvin Abney- Familiar Ground