Brooks Williams
Album: New Everything
Label: Self Released
Tracks: 13
Website: http://www.brookswilliams.com/

Brooks Williams' new album New Everything is a fresh, laid back and very confident album of a proficient musician that doesn't seem to be in the need of proving himself anymore. He is just playing what he wants to play and seems to enjoy it just as much as his listeners hopefully will. His singing his so laid back and effortless and his guitar playing although amazingly artistic and refined sounds just as relaxed.

Brooks is a singer-songwriter without any of the attributes that are sometimes associated with that term (if justified or not): In his music there is no self-pity, there is no melancholy, no darkness. And, hard to imagine, it's still really good music. First of all, it's his amazing guitar playing. Listening to it is such a pleasure in itself - every note is played with love and attention. There is such a variety of sounds in his playing - there is a constant change of loud and quiet, soft, tender and then again stronger sounds. His guitar playing can do without his vocals quite well at times and Deep River Blue is actual proof of that. Here Williams gives his guitar playing time and space to be enjoyed without the vocals.

This is by no means to say his vocals were not enjoyable. They certainly are - they are lovely indeed. His voice is easy going, clear and warm at the same time. His lyrics are based on good and charming storytelling like in One Step where Williams takes us on a walk through Cambridge as it were. Americana and blues are the dominating elements on this album. My personal favourite, however, is the title track New Everything in which neither of the two is represented - it's a ballad that reflects on the changes that two lifes have gone through. To me it appears as the most emotional of the songs on this album. It's a toetapper with a jolly surface but with some slight regret lingering.

The overall sound of the New Everything is absolutely marvellous. Instruments and vocals compliment each other perfectly. Very enjoyable indeed.

Dagmar Brudnitzki