Still – Laurence Murray Project (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

Nostalgia ain’t what it used to be! That’s how the pun goes, isn’t it? And, jokes apart, something about that statement seems relevant to the sound that Laurence Murray Project makes on this, their debut album. I say that because, although there are all manner of sonic strands that resonate with the past to be found here – 60’s psychedelia, 70’s blues-rock, 80’s post-punk, and new pop, not to mention timeless soul sentiments and elegant rock energies – the resulting sound is both forward-thinking and very much of the here and now.

And it isn’t just through time and genre that Laurence and his sonic posse venture; his travels have taken him far and wide, from teaching in the Middle East to recording this album in the UK’s most remote recording studio, Black Bay Studio on the Isle of Lewis; influences and experiences that work their way into the DNA of the record.

If “Better Place” opens things up in a chilled, shimmering, and cinematic manner, this is only one of many moods and modes that he employs, though cleverly enough, even after he has taken the listener the length and breadth of the musical landscape, through all sorts of sounds and styles, there is still a remarkable consistency to the album, one that grounds the music as a body of work.

“Providence” is a jaunty, soul-pop piece, one shot through with bluesy guitar lines, “Our Love is Fading” is a gorgeous seventies-infused soul-ballad and “Tay Ho” is a grovesome piece that pushes these poised sounds into more rock and roll territory.

And then there are genuinely understated and spacious pieces like “Red Thread of Fate,” a song built on gentle guitar flurries and emotive vocals, the sound of seductive folk being polished with pop poise and reflective lyrical beauty. And if there was any question as to whether Murray is equally at home with more upbeat and driven sounds, it is answered by “NPD” and its gorgeous, West Coast rock sound, the sort of thing that the likes of Steely Dan would have killed to have in their back catalogue.

But, of course, music is just one half of an album, and here, the deft and disserning nature of the creativity also extends to the lyrics too. Turning back to “Red Thread of Fate” and a closer inspection reveals a poetic musing on the way we are tied to certain people in our lives, even when reason suggests we break free, we find ourselves “Hopelessly drawn back to this place, Time and time again.”

Similarly, the album’s final song, “You Are Where You Need To Be,” reminds us that we find ourselves in a place or position in life for myriad reasons, and often, the best lessons are learned in the most difficult of situations. This tale, in particular, seems to be a mantra or poetic truism in its own right.

Still is a glorious album, one that tugs at heartstrings and makes itself at home in the listener’s existing comfort zones. It is both fresh and familiar—so familiar, in fact, that you feel that these are songs that you have been listening to for half a lifetime. And if that isn’t the definition of a future classic, I don’t know what is.