Plum＜限定盤＞

When it comes to making music that seems breezy but sinks deep into listeners ears and minds, few acts are as skillful as Widowspeak. Molly Hamilton and Robert Earl Thomas fifth album, Plum, reflects just how much their music has ripened over the years. Much like they did before making 2015s All Yours, prior to recording this album Hamilton and Thomas worked steady jobs and tended to other projects, including Thomas debut album, Another Age. Once again, spending time away from Widowspeak paid off: Plum is a beautifully crafted set of songs that are as dreamy as they are grounded in reality. The albums title track is pure Widowspeak, with a golden hour glow that showcases Thomas eloquent yet understated guitars, the delicacy of Hamiltons songwriting and vocals, and the inspired ways they play off each other. Their chemistry is just as potent, if not more so, when they reflect on late-stage capitalism. On several of the albums standouts, they bury hard truths in soft, sweet melodies like the pit in a plum. Set to luminous synths, Breadwinners lament (Is this how you measure time?/Vacations you cant take/Is this how you count the hours?/The ones when youre awake) feels immediately relatable to anyone contemplating their work-life balance. On Money, the contrast between Hamiltons voice as she sighs what a time to be alive and the songs driving beat is equally surprising and welcome. While Widowspeaks music has bordered on being too hazy for its own good, the duo bring it into sharp focus by putting Plums rhythms front and center; the darkly grooving Amy and The Good Ones add forward momentum without sacrificing any mystique. Thomas and Hamilton sound just as engaging on the albums closing meditations on acceptance, whether its embracing uncertainty (in two languages, no less) on Jeannie or the sudden realization of Y2K. Taking things as they come is a soft strength that feels very Widowspeak. They seem to become more themselves with each album, and Plum finds them at their most immediate and compelling. ~ Heather Phares