Jose Gonzalez is known for his melodic classical style guitar playing and soft vocals in the music he has released as a solo artist. Albeit, he is an accomplished guitarist and the music is enchanting and he can draw the listener in.
Junip, the band, is a collaborative effort with Gonzalez on guitar, Tobias Winkerton on keyboards and Elias Araya on drums.
This trio has played together off and on for over a decade and this is the second album under the Junip moniker.
Although maybe a tad less guitar focused then Gonzalez’s records, this self-titled sophomore album easily fits into that psychedelic/folk genre; the sounds and the textures are more important than the lyrical content of the music recorded here.
The first track on the record, “Line Of Fire”, starts off gently with some sweet singing. The music builds and you are swept away with the strumming of the guitars. This song truly does grow on you with repeated listens and you can understand why it was picked to be the single.
“Your Life Your Call” and “Walking Lightly” are similar in nature and the music makes you drift along with the sweet sound of vocals keeping you somewhat connected to the ground. “Your Life Your Call” could easily be the next track picked as a single based on how it sticks in the mind after a few listens.
The noodling at the commencement of ‘Beginnings’ is reminiscent of early Pink Floyd. This Swedish trio may not take the songs to the depth and length of that English psychedelic band but they do parallel the mood of that time. Simple percussion, swirling sounds and ethereal vocals do make it sound a bit trippy.
Junip have sewn together a collection of songs that will take us into our antipodean winter and envelop you like a warm and comfortable blanket. This is easy listening music that just avoids becoming simply background music because of the beauty within.
