Review of Quite A Way Away [12k1070]

Norman Records (UK)

Gareth Dickson has been in the wars of late. After packing his bags and taking he big step of moving to Argentina with the promise of companionship awaiting him Dickson has since been shot at, bitten by dogs and nearly killed in a plane crash. Luckily he survived intact and is now packing a bunch of cool stories to tell his buddies when they visit. Due to these unlucky scrapes he’s been unable to craft new music until now and the result of his many adventures has resulted in a slightly antsy, anxious collection of songs that stray slightly from his usually super melancholic jams. A beauty a majesty is still present in his work with ‘Noon’ being a fine example of his ability to craft perfect ambient folk. Here Dickson’s Nick Drake-esque tones swim leisurely in a sea of reverberant finger-picked acoustic guitars. Opener ‘Adrenaline’ and ‘Get Together’ are prime examples of the sort of tension Dickson is capable of producing. On these tracks (and more as the album progresses) you get a real sense of the artists growing anxiety with the tightly wound guitar and vocal interplay creating an almost unbearable tension. Ignore all that stuff though and you’ll just be pleased to hear new material from Dickson, and on fine form he is too.

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