Something which will always get me excited is a new album in ‘The Magnolia Sessions’ series as I know it is going to be vibrant, exciting, and totally honest bluegrass/country/folk music which restores my faith in the music industry. That there are still musicians out there performing music such as this, and a label/producer willing to give them the opportunity then something is going right. The sessions always take place under the large magnolia tree at the Anti-Corp/Black Matter Mastering headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee, by owner Dan Emery, and the idea is to let the musician just plug in and play, with nature as their backdrop. Will was definitely in the mood as on the first day he recorded 59 takes in one session, with another 25 the following day, and Dan said he has a strange feeling that if he hadn’t stopped him, Will would still be there playing now.
He switches between auto harp, banjo, fiddle, whatever he feels is right for the song he is performing, all accompanying his wonderful baritone. Songs like “Careless Love’ are packed with emotion and feel very old indeed as he takes us gently through his troubles, whereas at others he can be dramatic and biting. Apparently, on the evening of the second day they sat on the porch, and Will traded songs with Nick Hans who was passing through – his throat must have been sore from all that singing, his fingers tired, but when one lives the music one takes every opportunity to play with others. This is not music from the 2020’s, but is much more like music one would have heard one hundred years earlier, and in these days of auto tune and everything sounding the same it is a true revelation. Here we have music which is live and vital, from a musician who is everything that words means, being captured by someone who is giving us the opportunity to hear music as it truly should be heard. Yet another sublime release in this incredible series.
Rating: 9/10
Links:
https://www.willicarlisle.com/
https://anticorpmusic.com/