Even if you are familiar with the lounge pop of Prewitt's first group The Coctails, or the "post-rock" of his more recent combo The Sea and Cake, it won't prepare you for the muted melancholic soulfulness of his solo work. Prewitt's a skilled multi-instrumentalist (on Wilderness he's credited with vocals, guitars, piano, mellotron, vibes, stylophone, drums, and percussion) who never lets his technical ability override the needs of the material. Wilderness features plenty of empathetic touches -including horns, violins, and mellotrons- all in service to the songs. There are no extended showcases of instrumental dexterity, but rather experimental song constructions that allow verses to ramble down their own path, with extra doses of cinematic color bursting through as each new section is revealed. "Way of the Sun" is an exquisite, economical opener, while "Go Away" is haunted with evocations of former Byrd Gene Clark at his psychedelic peak.
More By Archer Prewitt
- 1997
- 1999
- 2002
- 2000
Featured On
- The Sea and Cake
- Band of Horses
- Broken Bells
- Fleet Foxes
- The National
- Grizzly Bear
- Scritti Politti