Brightblack Morning Light’s first two recordings were great but limited; great in the way they fused blues, alt-ctry, indie, and soul into a lush, palatable product, limited in the way they used said template (with few wrinkles) for pretty much every tune. Now, heading into album number three, BML can choose to replicate the successes of at-bat one and two -- soft, comforting drones; gentle, loving vocals; space -- or throw off the shackles of their triumphs for experimentation.
When faced with these decisions, the best bands follow their instincts. It doesn’t always work out, no matter what road one chooses, so why not let your inborn abilities take hold? Brightblack Morning Light -- formerly Brightblack, Rainywood -- straddle the line expertly on Motion to Rejoin, adding distinct new touches to their slow, creeping washes while doing very little to change the skeletal workings of their sound.
If BML’s sound in the past is a Christmas tree adorned with little more than an angel and obligatory lights, the gospel backing vox of Motion to Rejoin are the bright-red santa ornaments; the xylophones tink-tinkling away are the decorative sleighbells; the extra bits of horns and keys the colored hanging balls; and the tiny scraps of effects newly draped over the vocals and instruments are the tinsel. Rest assured, it’s a restrained method of decoration that never pushes one element too far to the front.
All laborious metaphors aside, Motion to Rejoin is a delicate balance of old and new. Brightblack Morning Light retain a signature, singular, salient sound and still refuse to nudge their songs forward at anything but a crawling pace.
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