The transformation of Kevin Morby is now complete. There's little trace here of the guy who fronted The Babies. And while 2020's Sundowner and 2019's Oh My God moved the needle for the singer, this new record reveals Morby's utter ease at draping himself in a style, rather than simply affecting one. This is a Photograph, out on Friday via Dead Oceans, is just that good.
The title cut breezes in on a twang-y vibe like something from a Seventies Dylan record, while the sweetly catchy "A Random Act of Kindess" strives for a directness it surprisingly achieves. I've viewed Morby's journey over the last decade with a raised eyebrow, but I really think he's finally come into his own with this one. It doesn't matter anymore if you even know The Babies stuff. This material is certainly strong enough to pull in a listener who's new to Kevin.
Channeling Lou Reed and solo Lennon simultaneously, Morby makes "A Coat of Butterflies" a charmer despite its excessive run-time, while "Five Easy Pieces" tugs at the heart thanks to those strings. It's an act, maybe, but Morby makes this feel less like his shtick this time around, thankfully having jettisoned the overt Leonard Cohen-isms of earlier solo records. At his best here, like on the sublime "Stop Before I Cry", Kevin blends a sharp sense of song-craft with an innate ability to distill the appeal of Seventies Stones in a concise package. The tune has a gently epic quality about it, and it's cinematic too, and quite possibly the best song Morby's composed on his own so far.
I can't really pin down why this one worked so much for me except that a listener's never confronted with a moment where things don't feel genuine. Sure, Morby's adopting a guise that's fueled loads of bands and singers in earlier decades, but he's doing it so deftly here, with such a judicious choice of instrumentation and production, that the material soars right into the heart.
This is a Photograph is out on Friday via Dead Oceans.
[Photo: Chantal Anderson]