Martin Sexton – Seeds

Given that its been more than six years since the release of the last Martin Sexton album (save for a 2005 Christmas collection), Seeds feels at first a little slight, filled with songs about contentment, kicking back, and the ability to fail upward. Lucky for Sexton, though, that even trifles such as Happy, Goin To The Country and Im Here spotlight the supple, soulful voice easily his greatest asset that perfectly suits the easygoing nature of his songs. When he digs deeper, as on the gospel-inflected Wild Angles and especially There Go I, a bluesy meditation on faith and fate, Sexton shows he is capable of much more. A fuzzed-out take on Billy Prestons Will It Go Round In Circles, meanwhile, and the closing a cappella goof Keep It Simple seem forced. Appropriate to the albums title, there are seeds of a fine effort planted here. It just takes a little digging to find them.