I've been following Leeds-based Benjamin Wetherill's career with some interest for quite a while, and
am fast coming to the conclusion that his output represents some of the best new material
I've heard in the past 40 years... Earlier this year, he released the fascinating ultra-limited
edition Apollolaan EP, and has matched this with the unbelievably good Laura.
Perfectly mastered, perfectly mixed, perfectly performed and perfectly written, the album is
a masterpiece of understatement and subtlety, and has already made it onto my all-time
favourites list after just a handful of listening. Stylistically and musically advanced, the album
effortlessly fuses elements of folk, blues and experimentalism, producing something way
bigger than the sum of its parts. Someone once described Wetherill as the "Cliff Richard" of folk,
but that's wrong - he's much better than that.
After so many superlatives, where to begin with the actual tracks? The early instrumentation is
reminiscent of 1970s English country music, akin to Matthews' Southern Comfort allied to the poetry
and musicality of Nick Drake. But equally we have `noises off' and sound effects unifying the tracks
into a consolidated whole to the extent that, while there really are ten tracks on this CD, you
could easily be forgiven for thinking there was just one deliciously evolving sound experience, so
cunningly wrought are the instrumentation and mood changes.
I really can't praise Benjamin Wetherill highly enough. It's been such a joy to hear this music that
I hearby offer to do my best to help organise a guest night in Sheffield should he want one. This
is music that deserves to be heard.