Patrick Watson – Better in the Shade

Following his very successful 2019 record Wave, Patrick Watson’s current release Better in the Shade reflects the bizarreness and uncertainty of the past two years. As he puts it, the theme is “about negotiating a world where you don’t know what’s real anymore”.

Like the album itself, the artist is a paradox. Rather like a manly woodsman in appearance, his vocals are ethereal, almost feminine. Inspired by Virginia Woolf, among others, here his music is uncanny, yet reassuring, while also being cerebral and reflective. 

The title track featuring Watson’s soft falsetto is gentle, containing muted piano in counterpoint with violin and a rising tension. Height of the Feeling opens with unusual electro-synth and interwoven voices (Watson, Ariel Engle), which echo as if floating away into space, accompanied by heartbeat-like drums.

With gorgeous piano, Ode to Vivian is chimerical, like a ballet in a dream and Little Moments, with its grave electronic pulses and layered vocals, sounds hazy and far away.

Perhaps a summer song, Blue evokes a beach from a past life with its hint of The Girl from Ipanema. Melding stratified singing and complex chorus, this otherworldly piece also prompts visions of a vintage fantasy film. La La La La La sounds quite French New Wave with its whimsical, cinematic, improvisational tone, while conversely it has a note of flower-child hippie culture.

Finally, the unearthly, mystical Star is an intriguing composition with innovative, surreal instrumentals and a strange beat juxtaposed with mellow vocals (Watson, Sea Oleena). The most outlandish of all the tracks, it conjures a construction site on Mars or a celestial toy factory.

Better in the Shade is a brief album at just 22 minutes in length, but its richness illustrates that less can be more. Combining the retro with the futuristic, the work expresses nostalgia for a comforting past, fascination and trepidation about what is ahead, and no ground beneath our feet in the present. Patrick Watson’s striking, creatively ingenious record, with exquisite vocals and instrumentals, comprises an impressive accomplishment.

Catherine Sedgwick

Better in the Shade is released on 22^nd April 2022. For further information or to order the album visit Patrick Watson’s website here. The album is available in Hi-Res on Qobuz and all the major streaming services.

Listen to Height of the Feeling here: