Rainbow Valley

The prospect of fatherhood puts time into perspective, so it’s no surprise that it had a potent influence on Sydney's Matt Corby. That creative momentum got him back into the studio for his sophomore album, shedding any lingering self-consciousness about his professional identity. The search for a soul-driven sound to call his own took several EPs, culminating with his debut full-length album, 2016’s Telluric, and now, with Rainbow Valley, Corby is in a more comfortable place. Building on the experimentation that he began with his first album, he crafts elaborate backdrops against which his vocals can play. With production reminiscent of Spacebomb’s Matthew E. White, Corby teamed with Dann Hume to stretch the way his voice wends around each track’s arrangement. He laces “No Ordinary Life” with an R&B falsetto, sways with a gospel choir on “Get With the Times”, croons Amos Lee-style against the piano-backed slow burn of “Miracle Love” and winds it down on the dance floor with the D’Angelo-inspired “Elements". It’s no mistake that he named Rainbow Valley after the place where he lives with his partner and child. The LP finds Corby right at home in many soul styles.