Sam Amidon - Bright Sunny South

  by Maarten Schiethart

published: 30 / 4 / 2013

---

Review

A Vermont, USA expat now based and recording in London, Sam Amidon has played the fiddle, the banjo, and sung with folky avant garde folktronica outfit Stars Like Fleas, a Soft Machine of this day and age, for the Bordeaux-based Talitres label. The son of folk musicians Peter and Mary Alice Amidon, Sam is a natural in this genre. His mind is prone to ponder, but he is likely to keep himself line with melody. 'Bright Sunny South', Amidon's debut album for Nonesuch Records, and his third solo album, is almost stripped to the bone. Recorded with Doveman (who is Thomas Bartlett in real life), Shahzad Ismaily and Chris Vatalaro, it features a cover, or rather a distillation, of Mariah Carey's 'Shake It Off' and a US country hit, 'My Old Friend'. Sam's own numbers, however, show a certain lack in direction. As agreeable as it may come, this album compares mildly to the works of Robert Wyatt and Mayo Thompson, or, as reviews these days require obligatory comparisons, Leo Kottke is joined by a sober Alex Chilton. 'Pharaoh', sung as a farewell, ultimately becomes as equally tedious as the average Bjørk track, and his exquisite fingerpicking can't conceal it, yet at last he tries to be challenging. The few grand moments gain much from Sam Amidon's interaction of the slightly sinister disorientation that derives from the archaics of folk music traditions. The album is some kind of culture shock, mentioning the gallows, despite it being 2013. Talented though he is, I'd just wish he stood up against the use of such clichés. Superb music in its own right, it is equally and entirely unaware of today. He wastes his talents in other words. You can quote me on this; folk music is the escapism of today.

Track Listing:-

1 Bright Sunny South
2 I Wish I Wish
3 Short Life
4 My Old Friend
5 He's Taken My Feet
6 Pharaoh
7 As I Roved Out
8 Shake It Off
9 Groundhog
10 Streets of Derry
11 Weeping Mary

Band Links:-

https://www.facebook.com/SamAmidonMusi
http://www.samamidon.com/
https://twitter.com/samamidon
https://www.instagram.com/samamidon/
https://www.youtube.com/user/samamidon

Label Links:-

https://www.instagram.com/nonesuchreco
https://twitter.com/nonesuchrecords
http://www.nonesuch.com/
https://www.youtube.com/user/nonesuchr
https://www.facebook.com/NonesuchRecor