Wire & Wood by Tristan MacKay - CD Reviews
ROCK & BLUES NEWS RATING ********* 9/10
Wire and Wood is a beautiful collection of introspective love songs by UK singer songwriter. Tristan Mackay. Entrust your ears to this modern day troubadour & storyteller. Let him take you on a highly personal musical journey through the ups and downs of love and life – relationships break down, hurt and lonliness can run deep, but Mackay's songs and lyrics never become too depressing to listen to - there is always an underlying sense on Wire and Wood that some form of healing will follow. These songs are like unspoken lessons for life. The moral message seems to be: Learn from your mistakes and move on to better things - which is exactly what Tristan has done on his second Album.
Despite singing and playing his own brand of folk-influenced blues, his vocals are always gently delivered with well mesasured precision and clarity. Mackay is as English as a Devonshire cream tea . There's no sign of transatlantic ambiguity here, which is always good to hear. The UK is now producing some really interesting new young Blues artists, just like Tristan Mackay, who are taking their musical influences from the past and evolving them into something new and exciting. .
The subtle Hammond organ purring away in the background, the restrained drumming, the laid back bass-lines and the superb production qualities, enhance the late night ambience of this deliciously addictive CD. As you close your eyes and emerse yourself in Mackay's beautiful voice, you can almost imagine that he is there with you in your living room. This is the sort of album you can chill out to, sing along to, or cry to when you are feeling lost and alone. You can always relate to the feelings and stories behind the songs. Whether you are male or female, young or old, currently in a relationship or single - Tristan manages to write intelligent lyrics about universal subjects that connect with everyone.
You win again – On the short introduction track, Tristan’s voice is really crystal clear and has echoes of Tim Buckley. Full of emotion, the thoughtful, intelligent, lyrics, draw you into Wire and Wood from the very first line. He quickly warns us that “Love is a game that only the foolish play” and that "I gamble my heart when I know your cards are better than mine"
I’ll be yours Tonight – this follows on perfectly from the intro track. Tristan’s vocals are really moving on this beautiful grown-up love song. The acoustic guitar break is superbly executed and indicates that he is really finding his own personal style of playing. The first 4 lines of the song perfectly describe the human inability to resist temptation: " I’m a shadow of myself / a faded picture of the past / and you’re a danger to my health / an addiction that won’t pass." His astute and poetic self-assement flows solidly through the lyrics of this entire album. Each track tells you more about the singer's secrets as he turns himself inside out, offers himself up to you and bares his soul.
If I told you –the acoustic guitar on this track has a really lovely Clapton-esque feel to it from the very begining. The song sweeps over you in the first few bars, like a huge comfort blanket. By three tracks in to Wire and Wood, you know a little more about what to expect from Mackay. It’s like easing your weary feet into a comfortable pair of slippers at this point. His voice wavers beautifully with natural clarity and always delivers the right level of sentiment and feeling whether its a ballad of a more upbeat number. He always sings and writes honestly, wearing his heart on his sleeve at all times – and in doing so, he perfectly captures all the things we say when we are in love, whilst carefully avoiding phrases that sound tired or clichéd.
Wire & Wood – this track harks back to similar types of songs on his first album – and shows his natural progression and development as an acoustic singer songwriter. It is a clever love song to his guitar and an ode to music in general. These things are his “wire and wood” - the one constant anchor in life which drives him forward and allows him to express himself honestly openly as an artist.
The Wine and Me – is a heart-breaking retrospective song about letting go of memories and regrets that linger long after a relationship has ended. Tristan perfectly puts into words the sort of thoughts that go through one's mind after drowning your sorrows with a bottle of wine or two. Name checking the legendary “Van Morrison”, he sadly admits: “I know that it had not been all that it could be, but now that you’re gone, it’s just the wine and me”.
A kind of Blue – Again this follows on very well from the last track. This bitter-sweet blues song wouldn’t sound out of place on a Melody Gardot or Beth Hart & Joe Bonamassa album and there’s another really acomplished guitar solo delivered too. This is probably my favourite track on the album - but only just - there are a number of other catchy songs on Wire and Wod that you'll find yourself singing in your head, way after you've stopped listening.
Black Sheep – Are you like me? Are you like me? Did you fall off your family tree? Become the Black Sheep for all to see? This is about the unique personality traits - both good and bad -that we may or may not inherit from our family genes It’s a song that questions where you’ve come from and where you’re heading– are we pre-destined to behave just like our parents or grandparents, because of simple genetics? Can we change this? or do our personal experiences dictate who we are and who we become? Are we like our parents? Are our children like us? This lovely little song asks a lot of big questions about nurture & nature and paints an even more honest portrait of the singer.
Two of a Kind –– this is a classic soft blues shuffle, delivered in a really laid back style. It is essentially a song about love, betrayal, and the ending of an old friendship. Its about striking out on your own and moving forward when youv'e outgrown something or someone that was once special to you.
This Old Heart – is a much more upbeat song about leaving the past and all it's baggage behind you and finding new love and new life. It’s about getting over the hurt and pain, and being able to pick up your broken heart and move on, once you find the RIGHT person to share your life with. It’s a song bursting with strength, positivity and hope. After the blues comes sunshine and smiles.
Lullaby for Layla – a beautifully tender song, written for his baby daughter. It is full of the unconditional love between father and his child . It will make any parent or grandparent cry when they hear poetry within the lyrics. Being the last song on the album, it also brings the growing and healing process full circle. The world weary, cynical lines of the opening track are now replaced with a sense of contentment and peace, as the singer moves into a new, more grown up phase of his own personal life.
There is no doubt that Mackay is heavily influenced acoustically, by his hero, Eric Clapton. However the collection of songs offered up on Wire and Wood prove that he is an artist who is already developing his own unique style.
He’s worked incredibly hard to get to this point in his life, He has not sat back and waited for success to come and find him. He’s been proactive and innovative in getting his music heard. He's sacrificed a lot for this second album and it was all worth it. I’ve listened to the album frequently over the past few weeks and each time it just keeps getting better and better. The songs quietly work their way into your head like familiar old friends - which for me is the very basis of a good album. There are no "weak" songs or "fillers" here whatsoever.
On Wire and Wood, Tristan Mackay has written some seriously mature songs that showcase all of his writing and vocal talents to their best advantage. This is an eagerly anticipated second album that delivers on every level and never disappoints the listener in any way shape or form. It indicates even more exciting things to come in the future.
This well-crafted and expertly produced Album ought to be right on the top of your Spring and Summer playlist for 2015.
Rock & Blues News Rating *********9/10
(Copyright: Chrissy Hamlin / www.rockandbluesnews.com)
2ND REVIEW OF WIRE AND WOOD by Nigel Foster
The real tangible benefits of being part of Tristan’s pledge campaign for his new album became fully apparent last night when the album arrived and I was able to kick back in ‘the listening chair’ and let the deeply mellifluous music bathe me in its textures and shades of light.
The elements literally are centred on the wire and wood of an acoustic guitar, the sinew of the vocal chords and the lyrical and musical constructs of each of the ten tracks that make up the album. Spacious and empathic production from Martin Levan brings these delicate and intricate sounds to the fore, creating a sweeping vista of sounds that will soothe the senses in the most delightful way.
A measure of Tristan’s talent lies in the stark differences between this album and his debut, the acclaimed Out Along the Wire. Where that was bold and bright with a radio friendly sound Wire and Wood is deep, personal, emotional and stripped right back to the bare essentials thus showcasing the depth of the talents of the man. Each of the tracks is a narration on aspects of real life, relationships, love, loss and children.
Sitting in the dark with only the LED lights of the Hi-Fi I became immersed in the lilting melodies of each song and the searching depths of the lyrics, from the hurt outpourings of You Win Again through to the delicate touching Lullaby for Layla (literally written for new born Daughter), single plucked notes guide the melody and the hushed vocal combines to carry you to the end of an exquisite musical journey. Listening to the album in this way Tristan’s velvet rich, crystal clear voice evokes comparisons to luminaries such as Damian Rice and Ray Lamontagne.
I’ll Be Yours Tonight meanders along on soft drum fills, the deftest of keys strokes the cadence of the vocal and a soaring acoustic solo all amidst the poetry of the lyric; ‘When the morning light slips through your window like a fading memory I’ll be gone,’ simply lovely. If I Told You maintains the haunting atmosphere, opening up on a gentle wave of keys and acoustic notes and ushering in an almost spoken vocal that guides the way to a mood laden solo.
The title track lifts the feeling nicely chasing along on a flurry off acoustic notes and soft drum fills that weave in and out of the uplifting vocal. Wire and Wood, the tools of the man’s trade used to stunning effect and their importance to the man captured in the poetry of the lyric; ‘You would be my greatest friend and always be around, my wire and wood.’
The simplicity and clarity of the production from Levan shines through on the graceful textures of The Wine and Me, the vocal is once more crystal clear but the way in which each and every note plucked from the guitar rings out is sumptuous. I could hear the pressure applied by Tristan’s fingers to the strings and feel them work their way through the frets.
A Kind of Blue is all about the pain of a lost love, articulated expressively in the lyric and the melancholic musical passages, amplified by a tearing searching acoustic solo. Two of a Kind lightens the mood again, fluttering along as Mackay’s fingers sweep up and down the frets, matched by another clear vocal delivery.
Deep empathic Hammond B3 patterns sit under Mackay’s melodious voice on This Old Heart, more narrations of the struggles of life but the song is in no way mournful, there is an uplifting mood captured in the lyric and the melody.
It has been a joy to share this journey with Tristan Mackay and one that I am glad I have travelled. I hope he too is both happy and proud with the fruits of his labours? He certainly should be.
