by Oliver on November 6, 2023 in Album
Logan Ledger finds his one (also thanks to Shooter Jennings, who does a great job as producer). Golden Statebreaking away from the country of his self-titled debut album quite a bit.
Where vocally there are still omnipresent associations with the crooning grace of Roy Orbison or Chris Isaak, even sometimes now (as with the smooth nostalgic sentimentality Midnight in L.A.a Father-John-Misty-meets-Jonathan-Wilson retreat) also includes Orville Peck, and alone All the Wine in California (with its nagging pedal steel guitars and exuberant hook) always keeps Ledger’s traditional genre within reach despite all aesthetic adjustments, the singer’s stylistic weight shifts from the exemplary, dreamy, indulgent title song opener Golden State away with its soft pop arrangements of longing strings further into the (Jens Lekman’esque) Countrypolitan, reminiscing images of Laurel Canyon in the 60s and blurry Californian folk and singer-songwriter schemes – the somnambulist Till It Feels Right is not far from velvet paw escapism slowcore Saxophones removed.
Even if Golden State, the album, the level of Golden Statethe song, cannot necessarily hold up in the following (because many pieces last a bit too long or are too repetitive, and the simple romanticism of the lyrics means that there is no certain depth), Ledger wanders through with wonderful freedom despite a few meandering meters the newly discovered world.
The catchy tune There Goes My Mind continues to sway forward in an effortless, grating manner, gently rocking the dynamics. Some Misty Morning is a calm, wonderfully balanced duet with Erin Rae, in the background of which a wonderfully dirty one is subtly staged Wilco‘esk rocking guitar howls, like every element of the record is so well measured. Kudos, Mr Jennings! Court of Love allows the hips to shake more elegantly, I’m Not Here ripples in a contemplative, musing way, especially conducive to the context and the anachronistic Obviously swayed cuddly with wind instruments and piano.
Then ends Golden State However, it is still as beautiful as it began Where Will I Go from the intimate acoustic reduction bathes gracefully in cinematographic string harmonies and feels like an embalming consolation You Only Live Twice reminds us: Ledger may not have reached his zenith on his second album, but he has come a long way to finding himself more than on his debut.
Golden State by Logan Ledger
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