Graham - Never, And Maybe Not Even Then

  by Cila Warncke

published: 17 / 12 / 2001

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Review

Marrying whispering guitar melodies to wistfully seductive vocals, Graham’s new release on Dreamy Records, 'Never, and Maybe Not Even Then' is a quietly self-assured album that reaches out to pluck heartstrings left susceptible by the long twilights and lazy days of summer. Deftly staking out the emotional territory somewhere between the hopeless romanticism peddled by the now-defunct The Field Mice, and the weary resignation of The Beautiful South at their downbeat best, 'Never…' is unabashedly, and endearingly sentimental. A mere forty minutes long, the album nevertheless captures the mood of those hours and days that last a lifetime. The day after a lover leaves. Or the hours an insomniac spends waiting for dawn. It is a record about the warps in space and time created by the force fields of the heart. While the sad love song formula has been tried a thousand times – with varying results – 'Never…' pulls it off precisely because it pretends to not really be trying. By counterbalancing the weight of the lyrics with feather-light tunes Graham has managed to create the perfect summer record for folks who like their suffering romantic, and their beauty tragic.

Track Listing:-

1 Never And Maybe Not Even Then
2 Remember It Good
3 As the Time Keeps Ticking By
4 Funny How The Time Keeps Ticking By
5 Skywriter
6 All You Got Was Summertime
7 Thirteen Times Alone
8 Last Christmas
9 In der Heiligen Nacht
10 Remember It Good (Reprise)
11 The Best Spectacular