Guitars gather like clouds on the horizon of Gloryland. Kevin Gordon forms chords that rise in black, white, and gray bursts and it is his use of sonics that makes Gloryland so seductive. Distortion weaves through the songs. It coils around in wait on “Side of the Road”, wrapping around the rhythm and the salvation-seeking harmony of the McCrary Sisters.
Kevin Gordon uses his vocals as a beacon to guide you through varied gusts and swells on his six-strings. There is calm to his voice, more conversational and personal rather than shouting a message or trying to be heard over the rolling headers of sound. Kevin whispers the words into a world of ears on “Trying to Get to Memphis”, weighing how we can all either put our words about humanity into action, or turn away. ”Percolia’s Star” sparkles with persistent rhythm rumbling and echoing thunder beats; “One I Love” lets the guitar rip a groove into the air and demands that the drum and bass catch up before it bursts into a full throttle love song, and “Bus to Shreveport” chugs along beside a hefty story line that plays like a movie reel flashing by like lightning.
Kevin balances acoustic chords and electric riffs to tame the powerful force that both bring to “Don’t Stop Me This Time”. The track is words on the lips of a million singers, songwriters and pickers when they get “that look” that asks ‘when you gonna grow up and stop fooling with that rock’n’roll’? There is something about the way Kevin nurtures his relationship with the microphone that makes his words so damn believable. Having no back story beyond previous recordings, it is hard to say if the guy in “Colfax/Step in Time” is Kevin or someone he knows. The character comes alive as a life gets strung up on notes and chords.
The depth that Kevin Gordon’s voice and guitar work can bring to a song become really clear on the “Gloryland” title track. The delivery is parceled out, words are sung/spoken and shouted in equal measure. When the vocals bow down to the greatness of the guitar work and become just a head nod, the song reaches for the sky. The guitar work on the “Gloryland” track crackles and tears at the arrangement. It may just be a song, but that guitar is going to leave its mark! Kevin Gordon has a natural intuition for casting lyrics and music so that neither takes a back seat to the other. The music in Gloryland is as much a part of the emotional texture of the story as its characters and the story line.
More on Kevin Gordon can be found on his website. Danny McCloskey
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