Thomas Denver Jonsson “Barely Touching It” (Kite, 2005)

“Dark melancholia from Sweden’s finest”

Thomas Denver Jonsson’s first album, 2003’s “Hope To Her” was rightly acclaimed as one of the best of the year. His follow-up will surely repeat that success, if not surpass it. It’s an artistic quantum leap for sure, and Jonsson seems to have skipped three or four albums worth of “artistic development” to deliver a fully-formed masterpiece (and I use that over-used and abused word advisedly). Where “Hope To Her” was a young airy delight “Barely Touching It” is adult and dark, though no less delightful. In a nutshell, it’s South San Gabriel with more balls. It has the feel of a Scandinavian winter’s endless night, but is uplifting in the way that only true darkness can be. Jonsson still has an ear for a melody (“Time Stops when I hold you” and “Working Star” swing sweetly as any chariot) and a plaintive vocal, especially on “Walther”, that dances a tightrope above heartbreak and desperation, while his backing band (the wonderfully named September Sunrise) swing softly across the songs, Fredick Wilde’s pedal steel being particularly fine. But it’s the lyrics where he truly comes of age. From “Silver Boy”’s street that’s “just a missile of faces I don’t want to meet” to “Working Star”’s protagonist whose “fingertips rearranged tears on your shoulders” via a host of others’ Jonsson’s pen has conjured a hugely memorable set of images and characters. Apart from the afore-mentioned SSG, there’s a hint of Neil Young’s better moments from time to time, but Jonsson has confirmed here that he’s very much his own man, and far from barely touching it, he’s as close to to it as anyone.

Date review added:  Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Reviewer:  Jeremy Searle
Reviewers Rating:
Related web link:  Thomas Denver Jonsson website