Kategorie: CD-Reviews | Genre: Singer-Songwriter | Heft: Jahrgang 2014, eclipsed Nr. 160 / 5-2014 | VÖ-Jahr: 2014 | Wertung: 9/10 | Label: Rykodisc | Autor: SaS
Already his album "Photographs", released two years ago, was a revelation. A young man with a broken voice sang sensitive stories to Spartan country accompaniment. Often heard, yes, but there were already signs of what is now fully apparent on "The Lights From The Chemical Plant": that this Robert Ellis has a command of something that many of his colleagues are missing: he can tell stories that grab the listener, move him, make him want to listen to the record again and again. For example, he tells of a television addict and in the end reveals that his dependency is based on a childhood trauma. He tells the moving story of an aging couple who always saw the lights of a chemical factory shine in front of the window until the man dies and at the same moment the lights go out. One man reports wistfully how he leaves Houston because he can no longer bear the memories associated with the city. In the end, Ellis seems to be speaking for himself: He explains to his wife how unromantic and hose wearing life as a musician is on the road. The crowning finale of an extraordinary album.
Top Track: Chemical Plant
