Between the dawning memory of a great shag and the realisation that it's time to clean the sheets, exists a transcendental moment which even at it's zenith is tinged with the reality one must again confront. "The Home Recordings Vol.1" is a musical distillation of such ambivalent instances.
Significantly, Newland has divorced his work from the parochial concerns of his previous efforts. There remains a plaintive air in his music, but on this occasion the sunlight tickles your face.
From the mood perspective this is almost a conceptual piece, the songs united in a stoic resignation. Like a friendly pair of crusty underpants, they make more sense as part of your body then they do when viewed as an individual garment. That said, "Landslide" and "Tread Carefully" are consummate efforts in songmanship, and highlights abound in "Cortez The Killer" inspired guitar work on "The Bridge", and the orgasmic noise-fest crescendo of "The Balladmaker".
The deceptively whimsical, often acoustic-based material provides an ironic counterpoint to the barbed lyrics contained therein. "The Poultry King Of Georgia" is a perfect example of the way your initial perceptions get tossed aside; you might think it's going to be a finger-licking paean to Colonel Sanders, but the only chicken thing about it is the feeling this tale of 90's life through an early morning radio show instils in you.
"I feel musically constipated", said Newland after a frustrating summer tour last year... on the strength of "The Home Recordings Vol.1", he's definitely been on the Ex-Lax.