Eamon O'Leary - All Souls (2018)

For anyone familiar with Eamon s debut solo album from 2013, Old Clump, the honest simplicity of the music will feel like the welcome return of an old friend, which is fitting. Although there are changes to the personnel joining Eamon for All Souls. He is joined by a number of old friends, among whom Emily Miller s soft backing vocals and perfectly placed harmonies remain a constant, and invaluable, aspect of the album. Later in the album Marina Blue, a Folk Radio song of the day in March offers a bolder introduction, and Emily s harmonies seem to come from a deep, silky, soulful place. Declarations of love don t come more earthy than this love song to the city of Montreal.

All Souls also differs from Old Clump in that the wide range of special guests on the earlier album is replaced by more of a core band. Double bass player and vocalist Bridget Kearney featured on Eamon s previous release. Her work with Lake Street Dive (whose retro-soul tinged Free Yourself Up was released in May) might seem a world away from the soft harmonics of Eamon s solo work, but Bridget has a wonderful feel for texture, exemplified by the way her bass seems to blend perfectly with the soft vocal layers in Omaha. Opening with a simple drone and Eamon s delicately picked guitar, there are times when the remnants of his Irish accent work their way to the surface. By the third verse, the song is emboldened by electric guitar and keyboards, and the backing vocals drift into comforting harmonies before the steady drone of the opening is mirrored as the song comes to a close.

That quiet organ drone makes another appearance in Our Old Dominion; a beautiful blend of early 20th-century spiritual and alt-folk. Washed up once on a strange shore, the singer finds companionship and peace but is tempted away to the sea again and never returns. As the ocean s dead did around me throng/I saw the night it would be long. It s akin to a modern retelling of lives lost at sea, in which Eamon s voice compels attention, and takes on a nostalgic sweetness in the chorus. The organ comes courtesy of multi-instrumentalist Benjamin Lazar Davis. In addition to vocals and pump organ, Benjamin contributes drums, baritone guitar, and glockenspiel to the album; and it s the soft whisper of his brushed snare that emerges as the album s lead percussive voice. A long-time collaborator of Joan Wasser (Joan As Police Woman), Benjamin has also mastered African drumming styles through projects exploring Ghanaian and Central African music with Bridget Kearney.

Bywater, inspired by the bohemian New Orleans district that sits on the edge of the Mississippi, introduces an increase in tempo; but it s a sweetly and temptingly laconic one. The soft electric guitar for Bywater is one of two guest appearances on the album from Eamon s musical partner in The Murphy Beds, Jefferson Hamer; whose 2013 Child Ballads album with Anais Mitchell earned a BBC2 Folk Award. Jefferson also adds a beautifully sparse electric guitar to The Weary Child, a song that seems to yearn for a life on the road.

The Second Bottle opens with Thomas Bryan Eaton s pedal guitar, which quietly occupies much of the album. A song that embraces hope, The Second Bottle has the clearest country roots on the album, but as with every other aspect of All Souls, it s beautifully understated. It s a flavour, rather than a style, and the song writing is, as ever, exquisite. The moon may not shine, nor the stars align/ but they might, if you spend the night . Eamon has a magical way with words. He can encapsulate a moment, a notion, a hope, in a few short lines. Among the soft organ, bass and layers of guitar, Monique comes across as a song of regret, but with a hint of hope If I could play you like a bow/would it curl your toes?/or would it leave you cold? .

Closing the album, Trouble No More feels like the slowest possible waltz, the lyrics present a stark finality he breathed his last in the bathtub one evening , but also, as ever, a smattering of confidence our love may be wrong but our timing is right . The closing, short, flourish of acoustic guitar, bringing the album to an end with the softest possible exclamation mark.

Eamon inhabits two worlds. There s the New York trad Irish scene, where his knowledge of the music and technical skill make him a popular choice for the area s trad musicians. Then there s the altogether different, but not entirely separate world of the singer/song writer, where his contemplative poetry intrigues the curious; and the intricate yet seemingly sparse arrangements seem to effortlessly ensnare our attention. It s been proven before that the two aren t necessarily mutually exclusive, but finding the right balance takes a master s touch, and Eamon O Leary has that touch. All Souls seduces the senses with songs that individually open from a distance and come rapidly closer, but collectively flow along like a gentle river current. An album that s sure to become a firm favourite.