In 2020, Owen Young embarked on a musical quest to write and deliver an album called Muddy River. And to make the task more manageable, he has delivered it via a series of most excellent and often understated singer-songwriter EPs. So, following on from On A Day Like That, Town Line and Three, _These Painted Flowers_marks the final leg of that sonic journey, which he finishes both strong and tastefully.
The opener, “It Seems So Simple,” tells us much about Young’s heartfelt and honest approach. This gentle acoustic ballad muses on having the confidence to tell someone how we truly feel, a chiming and lilting piece adorned only with a graceful violin and some mellifluous guitar motifs. But like all his music, it is the lyrics and the sentiment that hold our attention.
“Keepin’ Bad Company” sees Young hand over vocal duties to Tia McGraff whose voice adds an extra dimension to the music, pushing an already lovely style into the realm of the sublime. And the title track changes things up again, this time a piano-led song running on a minimal beat but cocooned in a swirl of gossamer sonics, drifting harmonies, and then, when you least expect it, a late-night saxophone break, all sensuality, and jazz-infusions.
There might be little new to be added to the singer-songwriter sonic tool kit, so Owen Young opts to change the attitude and approach. Firstly, his songs are more elegant and eloquent than most, are more rewarding, and better wrought, as if he is able to take the same sonic clay and mold more beautiful objects. Secondly, he weaves through honesty, almost to the point of vulnerability, something which is much missing from the genre in the modern age.
You don’t need to worry about such pedestrian thoughts as sonic impact when you deal with creative integrity of this magnitude. Not in the slightest.
