Category:
Roots / Singer/Songwriter

Try if you like:
Andrew Bird, Bob Dylan, Lambchop, She & Him, Sparklehorse, Yo La Tengo

•   Never Had Nobody Like You

M Ward has been one of my favorite singer/songwriters for quite sometime. I still remember the first time I heard his Future Farmer album, End Of Amnesia. He has come so far from those days and in that time I've had the fortune to see Matt in a personal live setting, creating one of the best live shows I can remember.

Hold Time is his new album and he's done it once again. If you are reading this then you've probably already heard the track they are using to promote with, "Never Had Nobody Like You", if not, it's over on the side there. It's an instant classic. It's got the pleasant shuffle beat that M Ward has been using for a while. He keeps up with that vocal production where it sounds like he's coming out of your AM radio speaker. On "Jailbird" he sings in such a matter-of-fact and gentle manner but still gets the point across in a very pleasant manner. It seems as though this song is one of Ward's most produced though. 

A little later on he takes on Buddy Holly's "Rave On" and creating something very much his own. Really, it's like nothing you could have ever imagined the song sounding. He gets quite upbeat on a couple tracks like "Stars Of Leo", one of his best upbeat songs ever. But one of the best gems is the duet with Lucinda Williams: "Oh Lonesome Me", it's just astounding the way they work the song together. Don't expect a weak second half because another cracker doesn't come until "Epistemology", a mid tempo track that ranks among Ward's finest.

The best thing about Hold Time is that it's the longest M Ward album. 14 songs keeps you interested and free from boredom. When M Ward and Andrew Bird release an album within a month of each other, you know it's going to be a good year for singer/songwriter material. It can't get any worse.