Widowspeak's
Molly Hamilton and
Robert Earl Thomas hit a high point with
Plum, an album that confronted truths about time, money, creativity, and happiness with soft-focus sounds and lyrics that got to the point. It suggested that the duo still had plenty of ideas about what their music could be, a feeling that also seeps into
The Jacket. Initially, it was conceived as a concept album about a textiles worker who blows up their life by joining a band and falling in love; hints of these origins remain on "While You Wait," a gently bustling prologue that echoes
Harry Nilsson's "Everybody's Talking" and comments on living in an instant gratification society as it sets the stage. Ultimately,
Thomas and
Hamilton took a looser approach that suits their style perfectly, using a hazy montage of storytelling and symbolism that expands on
Plum's ideas with sounds and songwriting that feel as lived in as a vintage garment. On "The Jacket," they use little more than a widescreen twang and
Hamilton's whispers to tap into the way people, music, and pieces of clothing can become extensions of someone's identity -- and how, eventually, they're outgrown. "Slow Dance" takes the fallout of moving on in stride, with
Hamilton sighing, "let that be enough." Though her graceful vocals ground songs like "True Blue,"
The Jacket's instrumentation is some of
Widowspeak's most artful, whether it's the Mellotron that adds a psychedelic shimmer to "Unwind" or
Thomas' eloquent solo on "Drive." As on
Plum, every track on
The Jacket contributes to the overall vibe, and even if the album seems to float by on first listen, the warmth of the music lets the songs' meanings sink in deeper. This is especially true on "Everything Is Simple," a perfect example of how good
Widowspeak are at articulating complicated relationships and emotions in deceptively simple lyrics like "I'm no better but no worse/I'm still around but it's a curse." When the story comes to an end on "Sleeper" and
Hamilton sings "anyway, it made for a good song," it's just as powerful. All of
Widowspeak's experience feels channeled into
The Jacket's poetic, poignant songs, and after more than a decade together, they're continuing to build one of the quietly great discographies of the 2010s and 2020s. ~ Heather Phares
