Ken Stringfellow – Soft Commands

Ken Stringfellows follow-up to 2001s Touched, bears the mark of consistent movement. A glance at the CD booklet notes reveals the various geographies Stringfellows schedule has found him in: The songs were written and recorded in Seattle, New York, Hollywood, Vancouver, Athens, Sweden and Paris. No surprise, then, that the record feels more like a travelogue than a full-fledged studio composition.

The ambience of this travel also shows in the albums versatility. Stringfellow bounces from Harry Nilssons hooky eccentricity to John Lennons basic piano delivery to Brian Wilsons catchy sentimentality, all while being his purely eclectic self.

A perpetual romantic, Stringfellow barely strays from love and loss in his songwriting, and this record is no exception. When U Find Someone is blessed with a gushy chorus on par with any Pet Sounds-era Beach Boys tune, complete with aaah-oooh harmony vocals. On Je Vous En Prie, he pines for his French wife at the piano, and Let Me Do recall classic 70s singer-songwriter soul a la Timothy B. Schmidt.

Heavier on piano-driven ballads than Touched, this record is solid and mature, suggesting Stringfellows comfort with both his solo voice and the transitions in his life. Its also evidence of the rare case in which an artist wears his influences but still sounds inimitable.