1. The Wild Hunt
2. Burden of Tomorrow
3. Troubles Will Be Gone
4. You're Going Back
5. The Drying of the Lawns
6. King of Spain
7. Love is All
8. Thousand Ways
9. A Lion's Heart
10. Kids on the Run
I first got wind of the Tallest Man by conducting some research into who was playing Primavera last year and stumbled across a brief synopsis of him on the website and thought id have a look. On first listen to his myspace page I heard the gardener and was instantly hooked like the first time you tried Sunny D, well for me anyway (before the whole turning children orange incident). I managed to get a few good listens to Shallow Graves before the trek over to Barca and he became one of the main artists who I looked out for on the programme. As he came on stage I was amazed by his vocals and the brilliant way he plucked the guitar to an inch of its stringy life while having a forty mile stare that even Clint in his heyday would have been proud. During the set he played a song called the King of Spain and the crowd went mad, not only because it is a great song but because to this Catalan crowd mentioning that your not from Madrid always adds on some bonus points, by the end of it I reckon they would have installed Mr Matsson and deposed King Juan Carlos at any moment. After the festival I got home and listened to Shallow Graves to death and making it one of my favourite albums of 2009, even though it was released the year before. Since then ive been putting it on every so often making sure not to get album-weary and im glad to say its still a grower.
Do you ever get the news that an artist or a band have a second album coming out say in a matter of six months to a year and this excitement builds yet only to get disappointed from the initial brilliance from the first? Well this didn't happen with the Tallest Man's second effort, 'The Wild Hunt'. Just as I was going about my business the news came to me like a bolt from the blue that his second album was out and so I had to get my hands on it. Questions starting going about my head, will it be the same as the first, will he go a different direction like using penguins in the chorus or an Obo solo, what will it be like?? and so with some trepidation I slid on the earphones to findout....
Glory, with sunlight and angelic voices from the heavens I was delivered a masterpiece. From the first listen, yes the first listen I knew it was better than the first, this man, ney genius has been able to replicate what he made on the first album yet go one better. To begin 'The Wild Hunt' is cheery, upbeat and is a great intro, next up the 'Burden of Tomorrow' a bit slower yet more of the same. 'Troubles Will be Gone' is similar to the previous album with some very good plucking with lyrics that string along almost as quick. The outstanding track of the album has to go to 'You're Going Back' with the brilliant line, 'you said driver, please....don't go that....fucking way' almost screeched, I reckon one for the live set to sing along to. 'The Drying of the Lawns' is a bit of a sombre affair but lines up 'King of Spain' really well, the fastest song on the album and second to 'You're Going Back' for singability. The next few tracks bring the pace a bit down yet individually are very good to standalone by themselves. Ill finish off with the last song 'Kids on the Run' which only has a piano that brings to the fore his vocal and lyrical ability.
To sum up its my album of the year so far and I reckon may stay there for the remaining three quarters unless he makes a third of course, depending if he can get the penguins in tune. But a superb second album and ill be looking forward to seeing him again, if I was Juan Carlos id be looking over my shoulder right about now.
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