Mull Historical Society - Dear Satellite

Vor einigen Tagen konnte Colin MacIntyre auf der Jahreshauptversammlung der Mull Historical Society nicht nur seinen ersten Roman "The Letters Of Ivor Punch" sondern auch sein siebtes Album "Dear Satellite" vorstellen. Er legte kurz die Verbindung zwischen den beiden Werken dar, die über den Protagonisten Ivor Punch erreicht wurde, berichtete, dass das Album, wie auch dessen Vorgänger "City Awakenings" (2012), auf dem Label Xtra Mile Recordings erschienen sei und dass er als Produzenten erneut Don Morley gewinnen konnte. Als erwähnt wurde, dass dieser bereits mit Adele, Grinderman und Sting zusammen gearbeitet hatte und sich für "Back To Black" von Amy Winehouse verantwortlich zeichnete, ging ein leises Raunen durch den Gemeindesaal in Mull. Als MacIntyre seine Rede mit folgenden Worten beendete...

“I couldn’t be happier with the album. It is 10 songs, 36 minutes, and it feels like a perfect distillation of what I can do, and my best work. I’ve really pushed myself as a songwriter and tried to challenge myself to evolve sonically and capture a unique atmosphere within the album. There is a lot of space in it, lushness, but also it feels punchy and melodically pop. It is about home, getting home, leaving home, finding home, whatever planet or street or field you live on. Whatever home means to you. I think having a new music publishing deal with BMG/Xtra Mile Music has also made me reach for higher. I’m so excited to see it enter the world. It looks bloody good too!”

... brandete tosender Applaus im Saal auf. Zu Recht, darf man konstatieren, nachdem man "Dear Satellite" gehört hat.

The ten tracks here range in character and texture, but all generally fall into MacIntyre's wheelhouse of warmly crafted, introspective guitar pop. Leading the pack are the aforementioned single "The Ballad of Ivor Punch," the dark and quirky "Bones," and the heartfelt jangle of "Each Other." Album opener "Build Another Brick" is also a lovely bit of pop balladry with its big, hooky chorus and unique transitions. If the remaining cuts don't quite live up to the artistry MacIntyre showed in his early years, their lived-in portraits of love, family, and mortality come from the heart and fill in the mortar on another solid MHS release.

(all music)

Recording together in rural Oxfordshire, MacIntyre spent time wandering around fields and tumbledown churches, and even took some lyrics from gravestones he stumbled upon.

By rights then, this could have been an exercise in pretty, pastoral, gothic lullabies. Instead, Morley’s high sheen, pop production and MacIntyre’s optimistic spirit and meandering imagination fills Dear Satellite with dreamy, acoustic-pop songs that hold cinematic ambition and lush, swelling, crescendos. The combination works a charm, and MacIntyre sounds more energised and alive than he has in years.

(Drowned In Sound)