[rating=7.00]
Will Johnson is having a dark night of the soul, and lucky for us, it sounds pretty damn gorgeous. Though he’s known for being a member of Centro-matic and the Undertow Orchestra, Johnson is a brilliant and prolific solo artist. His latest release finds him brooding and solitary, independent but alone. Without a side project tying him down, Johnson freely explores his songwriting, playing with the contrast between soft harmonies and atmospheric sound effects.
Hatteras Night is a folk record with a twang and an edge. There is danger lurking in the shadows of Johnson’s songs and great beauty in his restraint. His vocals are haunting and gauzy on “Hey-O, Hi-O” and then raspy and hard on “Heresy and Snakes”. The pedal steel guitar on the latter adds an intriguing “come hither” to Johnson’s stark, percussion-heavy arrangement that almost sounds like a death march. Hatteras Night finds Johnson really coming into his own as a storyteller, creating tense narratives about spirituality and human relationships. He embraces the murkiness and the unknown, however painful or frustrating.
The album’s standout, though, is a love song. But not one with a sweet, happy ending. “Ruby Shameless” tells the story of a stripper and the man who wants her to know her worth. It is the search for identity in a faceless person, and a soulful and stunning glimpse of a connection between two people. It is brief, but nuanced, and Johnson will break your heart with it. “Let’s take the time/And wish it all away/Maybe not for forever/But this is somewhere you can stay/ To them you are nameless/Just a little crush of flesh/A cigarette burn/Or a spill across your chest…I see you plainly/In my own sacred light,” he sings, with that pedal steel wavering behind him, distorted and solemn, like life can sometimes be.
