Fink - Distance And Time

by Jennifer Perkin

Subtlety with soul

"‘Under The Same Stars’ is the kind of song that you can just imagine Coldplay turning into some kind of cheesy stadium anthem complete with choir and fireworks, but Fink opts to keep it characteristically pared downed and infinitely more listenable."

If Jack Johnson’s a little too cutesy for you, Jose Gonzalez a bit quiet and David Gray a bit boring, give Fink a go. This second album of his is in the realm of the above performers (leaning towards Gonzalez really) but is just interesting enough to transcend a ‘music for mums’ vibe. This kind of singer/songwriter guitar music is so ubiquitous – just turn up at an open mic night if you don’t believe us – that when someone actually does it well it deserves to be noticed.

In particular, opener ‘Trouble’s What You’re In’ is a positively beautiful, broody tune, the kind of simple mood song that transcends genre. It also displays the traits that distinguish Fink from the acoustic-guitar weilding throngs; his soulfulness and his restraint. He has an effortlessly gorgeous voice – again, far better than the aforementioned singers – as displayed on the almost R&B ‘If Only’, but he is never tempted to show off. ‘Under The Same Stars’ is the kind of song that you can just imagine Coldplay turning into some kind of cheesy stadium anthem complete with choir and fireworks, but Fink opts to keep it characteristically pared downed and infinitely more listenable.

It’s subtle touches, like the humming on ‘This Is The Thing’ and the soft fuzzy guitar at the end of ‘Little Blue Mailbox’ that make this more than a collection of nice songs, but a really great album. It’s not all so brilliant – the lyrics for ‘Blueberry Pancakes’ are too literal and obtrusive to get past – but there’s certainly more to admire than not and it’s short length at nine tracks shows an adherence to quality over quantity that comes through in his lean songwriting style generally.

Don’t get us wrong: this is inoffensive, completely orthodox and easy music to listen to. But if anyone was ever going to reverse the negative connotation of ‘easy listening’, it’s Fink.

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