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 Caught in the Carousel - "There will be music despite everything"
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William Duke
Presents...The Sunrise and the Night
Kool Kat Music
You're not likely to find a recent pop album played with such an adroit mastery of the paradigm as William Duke's The Sunrise And The Night. The former Bye Bye Blackbird's solo effort practically laps Teenage Fanclub's latest in terms of songwriting finesse and craft. Duke's delivery falls somewhere between Game Theory's Scott Miller and Alex Chilton and the boy knows his way around a pop song. "Keep Me In Your Thoughts" is airy and contemplative; "The Canyon" has all the soaring beauty of Art Garfunkel's solo work and "The Impending Happiness" confirms Duke's allegiance to The Beatles. Elsewhere, the Byrdsian title track is a real gem; "Sacrificial Light" is just lovely and "The Great Escape" sings of a gypsy bloodline and makes a casual step towards alt country. Duke's voice is a honeyed thing that never over saturates the listener and turns what could be sweet into something saccharine. In another's hands, the candied "You're Young And You'll Forget" would surely be misplayed, but Duke knows how to keep the recipe balanced and that's what makes this such winning work.
—Alex Green
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