Tamas Wells - Two Years in April (Album)
For me, Tamas Wells was one of those names you see bounced around like a ping-pong ball but never really get to catch. There’s been the odd snippet here and there, so it’s good to finally sit down for half an hour of him on this new album.
It’s probably more acoustic folk than anything. His press release says he’s a Melbourne born Burmese resident who’s big in Japan. But the big question is - as with any product review - is it any good? The answer is yes, yes it’s just fine thank you. It’s polite, nice, pleasant, pretty - all of the above. I wouldn’t walk five hundred miles for it, but it does make for ideal accompaniment during light tasks. It’s just a man with a guitar, banjo, percussion, wistful voice and a friend with a viola (Jo Griffiths). No lumps, bumps or surprises here, but in a good way.
Certain artists such asSufjan Stevens love a good long-winded song title (and subtitle). Although there have been far worse offenders, look at these few examples from Tamas Wells. Without their individual subtitles there’s Fine, Don’t Follow A Tiny Boat For a Day; also The Day That She Drowned, Her Body Was Found, or 14 Acacia Court, Sanctuary Green 3093, which I believe is the address for any leftover words not already claimed by folk singers. If you asked me to specifically deliver the Wells cut Three Courses and an Open Canoe, I’d probably get it wrong and play I Want You to Know It’s Now or Never without realising. It’s not like this is someone repeating charismatic words like “Beat It” to a funky back beat, nor is he scripting some three-part vignettes each sharing a common theme, but just plain honest musings on a disc that after starting with a whispered “…2, 3, 4…” concludes even more modestly.
