We've been extolling the virtues of MICHAEL WESTON KING'S songs for so long we're almost blue in the face at this stage, but his pointedly-titled new album 'A New Kind Of Loneliness' again begs the question: why does this man remain perhaps the UK's most terminally under-rated singer/ songwriter?
The answer's possibly down to geography. Despite sharing management with Nick Cave during his tenure with former band The Good Sons and boasting an address book with names like Chris Hillman, Roger McGuinn, Ron Sexsmith and Jackie Leven (several of whom make appearances here), MWK'S roots remain in England rather than the Texan plains of his former touring partner/ occasional collaborator Townes Van Zandt, thus - in certain critical circles - rendering his art somehow either less than genuine or somehow not worthy of the critical attention afforded his roots-y Transatlantic contemporaries.
All of which may not be worth a hill of beans in the long run, but it's still galling when numerous, lesser roots-related contenders continue to be thrust under our noses from across the water when we have someone here who should be cherished. Predictably, to rub salt in the wound, 'A New Kind Of Loneliness' - the long-awaited follow-up to 2004's excellent 'A Decent Man' - is quite probably King's very best album to date and one which (again) re-inforces his credentials as one of the UK's very best singer/ songwriters.
Accomplished, beautifully-arranged and poignantly-observed songs are still the order of the day, although this time round the producer's chair is occupied by a bigger name (Jim Spencer, whose CV also includes the likes of The Charlatans and New Order) and the overall feel is perhaps a little more expansive and opulent than the (sometimes) slightly more intimate 'A Decent Man'. Indeed, songs like 'Only Seven Days' and the yearning, cinematic opener 'Here's The Plan' come with gorgeous, swoony choruses and struggle to deny their in-built anthemic tendencies even allowing for King's only-too-relatable, world-weary lyrics.
Besides, many of these songs are richly deserving of a slightly broader musical canvas and work beautifully as a result. Tracks like 'This Man Can Break So Easily' and especially 'Lost' continue to sup from the soulful stream that informed 'When The Spotlight Fades' from 'A Decent Man' and rank among the finest tunes here. The former is buoyed up by Mike Cosgrave's tip-toeing piano, Alan Cook's typically tasteful pedal steel and Jackie Leven's expressive guitar hooks, while 'Lost' is treated to a tremendous sweeping arrangement and features perhaps one of MWK'S finest vocals to date.
Crucially, the songs' backdrops are never allowed to dwarf the often intensely-personal subject matter. Despite being in possession of another regally sweeping chorus, 'Saturday's Child' is a vivid snapshot of a divorced parent struggling to accept the limitations of weekend visiting rights ("I'm driving south to the place I now call home/ I can't see you from the bridge but I know you're still waving at me"), while 'The Last Hurrah' is another of those supreme, lump-in-the-throat ballads - along the lines of 'Mother Tongue' and 'Watch My Dreamboats Sail' - that King continues to make his own and then some.
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The album's most stripped-back moments are the ones featuring MWK'S guest stars. In the case of 'My Heart Stopped Today' that's Chris Hillman (mandolin, vocals) and Herb Pedersen (banjo, guitar, vocals) and the stately 'From Out Of The Blue' it's Ron Sexsmith doing the honours on backing vocals. Perhaps inevitably, the former is the most obviously roots-y outing on the album, though it's hardly a 'Gilded Palace Of Sin' out-take, while the elegant musical backdrop of 'From Out Of The Blue' is juxtaposed with a melancholic, murder-imbued lyric that we'd normally associate more with someone like Luke Haines.
For all the strength of King's songs, however, arguably the album's absolute standout comes from the pen of one Gilbert O'Sullivan. No, I'm not on drugs (honest), for the the Nico-esque harmonium drone, marching snares and one of King's most emotive vocals turn the much-derided 'Alone Again Naturally' into something of heart-rending beauty you wouldn't have thought imaginable. If that wasn't shocking enough, he then ploughs on to the finish line with the dark, obsessive creep of 'It Will End In Tears' , which - with its' stung and bitten-off guitar and tormented lyrics ("And there was nothing I wouldn't do/ I was totally consumed by you/ it will end in tears") may well come to be viewed as Michael's very own 'I Want You' in years to come.
OK, so quite probably 'A New Kind Of Loneliness' will again head off in the opposite direction to the way the fickle zeitgeist is blowing, but that's long since ceased to be an issue with Michael Weston King. What is important is that it's perhaps the most consistently impressive addition to an already terrific catalogue that many of the supposed 'Americana' contenders would secretly give their right arms for. If you continue to deny him, you really are a fool to yourself.
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