Eliza Gilkyson - 2020
Red House Records
****1/2
Eliza Gilkyson has always seemed unafraid, and bold when it comes to both her music and her life. This latest album is possibly 
the strongest she’s ever sounded ... palpable and forceful, leaving you awestruck with her intensity. An incisive, evocative collection, Eliza keeps it real by unearthing diamond hard truths. A true-blue crusader who stands up for the things she believes in she has and always will be seeking that ‘truth’ that makes her footprint, the way she deems healthy, profound, and progressive. This thought-provoking album keeps its thumb on the pulses of our hurting planet and our aching human race, with Eliza’s unmistakable voice diving and leaping with focus and flash from song to song and mode to mode, backed by a top-gun band.
Uncertainty, hardship and facing the unknown are all topics that humanity needs to combat in 2020 and Eliza inspires the weary and mends broken souls in a set of songs that fires up the blood with an assured and determined approach.
Anchored by gentle acoustic guitar and embellished with slide guitar, harmonica and keyboard flourishes, the opening Promises To Keep doesn't shout. Instead, it eases its way into your ear, a gentle, clear-eyed conversation that’s warm and inviting rather than brittle and off-putting. Peace In Our Hearts is a powerful anthem that marches to an insistent and hypnotic rhythm and is subtly persuasive. While the subject matter is heavy, the message is ultimately one of hope that is accentuated nicely with gritty guitar harmony weaving within the swirling rhythmic currents. My Heart Aches examines boldly the problems of hatred that continue to dominate all of humanity from the race riots of the 1950s and 1960s, through the peace marches and protest movements of the past six decades to the current immigration and refugee problems of recent years. A true reflection of humanity’s darker side that should make us all re-examine or own behaviour.
There's a mysterious darkness that ebbs and flows throughout One More Day. Eliza’s vocals are almost like quiet whispers, so as not to wake the others in the house. The bluesy Sooner Or Later is another rallying call against the inequalities in today’s world. The uncluttered arrangement captures her in a moment of releasing every pent-up feeling at once, producing an emotionally harrowing listen full of unflinching honesty. With an enchanting waltz arrangement Beautiful World Of Mine sounds like a good old-fashioned American folk song with gentle pedal steel, artful fiddle flourishes and heavenly vocal harmonies. There are just a couple of outside songs: Bob Dylan’s biting A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall and Pete Seeger’s wondrous Where Have All the Flowers Gone, both of which fit snugly into 2020’s message of inclusion and solidarity.
Eliza Gilkyson proves with this album that she’s a risk taker, a fact that’s reflected in her left-of-centre sound and compelling lyrics, making her an intriguing artist with a distinctive story to share and establishing a powerful presence in today’s music. In several distinctive ways—voice, dynamic subtlety and sheer songwriting ability—she is in a class of her own. This is a collection that adds to her growing legacy.
April 2020