Folk is currently having somewhat of a shining moment in the mainstream, and Johnny Flynn is the latest artist to be pushed into its glare, with The Times going so far as to declare him ‘the next poster boy of the nu-folk scene.’ Returning to our attentions with his second album Been Listening, his heartfelt and sincere lyrics lure us in to a world where love is simply told how it is, but is it really anything different to what we’ve been offered more readily by bands such as Noah and the Whale and Mumford and Sons over the past year?
Flynn relates a more traditional style of folk, rather than the pop-infused style that has been recently been gathering momentum. Songs such as 'Barnacled Worship' are so ingrained with traditional sounds that at times I feel like I’ve been transported back a hundred years to the rural countryside of Ireland. Trumpets play a significant role in the composition of songs on this record, and make for a rather obtrusive inclusion in comparison to the daintily plucked acoustic strings that appear alongside them. As the album progresses, electric guitars and drums become more abundant, and add a more blues-y touch to proceedings which integrate better with the brass we’ve seen interjected from the beginning.
The vocals are generally very stripped back and raw, which significantly aids in creating his earthy and established folk sound. Impassioned but deliberate, Flynn sings with conviction whilst maintaining a sense of innocence and spontaneity which adds to his charm. This innocuous tone is also conveyed through the lyrics, which set the scene of broken hearts and yearning love amongst the dew and the harvest of which he describes in rather an idealistic manner. Somewhat unsurprisingly this record features 'The Water' a duet with current folk sweetheart Laura Marling, but despite there being such potential in this pairing, the result is rather lacklustre. Granted, their voices compliment each other well, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t Flynn’s intention to invite an artist onto his record who would ultimately serve to highlight all the weaker points in his vocals with her almost flawless, ethereal ones.
The album may not be life-changing material but it’s an honourable effort from an artist attempting to encapsulate all the finer points of the folk genre. With the majority of songs clocking in at nearly five minutes, the problem is that they are often too prolonged and as a result fail to hold one’s attention. There has been much hype about this man, but realistically his sound is currently too prosaic to garner him the attention that his contemporaries have enjoyed.
This review was originally posted on www.culturedeluxe.com
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