Staff Reviews

Steve Gunn - Eyes on the Line

Review by Dave Beech

Rich with possibilities and rife with unanswered questions»

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Matador Records release Steve Gunn's new album 'Eyes On The Lines'. Gunn's music has always embraced expanse and movement, springing from the simple and profound relationship between humans and their environment. 'Eyes On The Lines', his Matador debut and follow-up to the pastoral and highly acclaimed 'Way Out Weather', is Gunn's most explicit ode to the blissful uncertainty of adventure yet. Accompanied by a full band - Nathan Bowles (drums, banjo, organ), Hans Chew (wurlitzer), James Elkington (guitar, lap steel, dobro), Mary Lattimore (harp), Jason Meagher (bass, guitar, flute), Paul Sukeena (guitar), Justin Tripp (bass, keyboards), John Truscinski (drums) - 'Eyes On The Lines' presents Gunn embracing his urban surroundings through a series of songs that showcase his extraordinary ability to match inventive hooks to deftly constructed melodies full of personality. Gunn's songwriting on 'Eyes On The Lines' tells vibrant and evocative tales through a series of both imagined and real-life characters and moments, but throughout, he is more narrator than diarist. Take debut single, 'Conditions Wild,' easily Gunn's most accessible number to date. Directly inspired by Rebecca Solnit's A Field Guide to Getting Lost, it's accompanying, highly-stylized video, directed by Brandon Herman, captures the notion of finding comfort in getting lost and embracing the unknown, an important concept to Gunn in his songwriting and playing, and the creation of 'Eyes On The Lines' as a whole.
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