The sixth album from honorary Irishman Josh Ritter is supposedly one that documents a "new period of his life". It's an affable listen, and a definite grower - but the Idaho man is still far from his defining album.
It's hard to figure Josh Ritter out sometimes. Taken to the bosom of Irish singer-songwriter-lovers like he was one of our own, the Idaho man's career trajectory has veered as wildly as a (cue: unimaginative stereotype) bronco across the pasture. A top-notch second album ('The Golden Age of Radio') was followed by a number of more commercial, but arguably less satisfying records ('Hello Starling', 'The Animal Years') – but perhaps it's just taken Ritter time to settle into the spotlight and nestle into a niche that straddles both aspects comfortably.
His more recent output (particularly 2007's 'The Historical Conquests of…') would suggest that he's edging closer to making his defining record, and album number six confirms that theory, although Ritter is still nowhere near it.
That's not to say that 'So Runs the World Away' isn't an enjoyable listen, though. Supposedly documenting a "new period of his life" (he got married last year and recently signed a book deal that will see his first novel published next year - the next Willy Vlautin?), these songs see Ritter's distinctive twang coil itself around lyrical vignettes so effective that they could be fables ('The Curse' and 'Folk Bloodbath' are especially impressive). The vast majority are guitar-based tunes that gather instrumental layers as they progress, although they swerve from Dylanesque folk ('Southern Pacifica') to Paul Simon-like deftness ('Lark') and Springsteen-style euphoria ('Lantern') fluidly - harder than it sounds.
There's nothing wrong with 'So Runs the World Away', per se - but if you haven't already been seduced by Ritter's wordy charms, it's unlikely that this will be the album to change your mind.
