Phillip Broussard – Wavelength

Phillip Broussard – Wavelength

AMAZON: https://www.amazon.com/Wavelength-Phillip-Broussard/dp/B077P3C5GD

Roots music has been experiencing quite the resurgence in the past year, and while it might be easy to chock up this trend to a wider trend leaning towards more pastoral music in general, I tend to disagree. Country music isn’t experiencing this kind of a boom right now, and the same can be said for the bulk of folk artists in general. But roots musicians in the vein of classic Americana singer/songwriters have something special right now, and I think it has everything to do with a collective renewed interest in stripped down music that embraces all of the most celebrated aspects of the American songbook and blends them together in a modern, thoughtful style of composing. In my opinion, the key artist at the forefront of this movement right now is Seattle area-based singer/songwriter Phillip Broussard, whose new extended play Wavelength embodies all of the makings of a solid folk record while distinctly pledging its aesthetical allegiances to the Americana that inspired its star.

Anyone who has heard Phillip Broussard’s work already knows what his biggest selling point is – his charisma – and Wavelength offers new fans an excellent opportunity to be introduced to and get to know his artistic identity up close and personal. In terms of vulnerability in songwriting, for my money it doesn’t get much better than songs like the heartfelt “In My Chords” and yearning “All Over Again,” both of which offer vastly different shades of Broussard’s colorful palate and further exhibit his depth as a musician with their inclusion in a single EP. Another fine highlight from Wavelength is the bittersweet “Just Wanna Believe,” which showcases our singer’s fantastic storytelling abilities and a sensitivity that goes much deeper than the already poignant lyrics allude to.

I will say that I think Broussard has some room for artistic and compositional growth, but based on the fact that it’s still remarkably early in his career and he’s already turning out music that is this mature and well crafted, I don’t think it’s going to be hard for him to come into his own in no time. Wavelength is a very well rounded extended play that if nothing else shows us just how capable Broussard is as a performer and proves that he is ready to take his burgeoning career to the next level with a full length album. I’m very curious to see and hear what he does next with his career and whether or not he continues to play in a solo, raw format like this or maybe add some additional pieces to create more atmosphere to accompany his very creative, articulate skills as a composer. The best thing about this stage of the game for him is that literally anything is possible, and with all of the attention and critical exposure Wavelength is giving him nowadays, he’s going to have more opportunities than ever before to expand his approach and refine his craft to develop a sound that will become uniquely and exclusively his.

SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/album/5J92SQBZG2xhPXJiLPGOtE

Mindy McCall