Withered Hand | New Gods [ALBUM REVIEW]

New Gods sounds like overcast California, or perhaps that's sunny Edinburgh. Dan Willson, the Caledonian transplant behind Withered Hand, seems to have been touched by the West Coast. Throughout the album, chiming electric guitars, organs, horns, mandolin, and gently cooed backup vocals envelope his central acoustic guitar. Moments of uplift, teetering on  triteness, are tempered by a brooding existential wit that pokes out at unexpected moments. A sense of doom shrouds him as he guzzles Robitussin in “California”, he stumbles on the pocket pussy stashed in his pocket in “Love Over Desire”. These moments help to add personality to traditional singer-songwriter material. Although I was initially sceptical, Willson's untrained vocal style helped win me over to his side. Sounding like a cross between Wayne Coyne and Neil Young singing through a wooly cap, Willson's lack of polish is charming enough to hold interest. Although songs like “Fall Apart” feel anthemically manipulative, the final stretch of songs, including the delicate “New Gods” and boisterous “Heart Heart”, bring the album to a fine close. As the horn section triumphantly swells on closing track “Not Alone”, it sounds as if Willson is exactly where he wants to be, adding his stamp to a road well travelled.