Mark Mulholland is a travelling Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer. A restless force of nature who has released more than twenty albums, solo or with bands and other configurations, and many more as producer, engineer, or arranger, plus a host of contributions as a guest or session musician. His latest release `Fighting With Your Shadow` is a mix of songs from a few different musical strands he has been following of late.
We are eased into the latest release with `Reality TV` with some effortless guitar chords on this view on what`s really behind observational television shows where he laments this despairing feature that may be a metaphor for how life has gone to hell in a handcart and what the future holds. It had some Byrds like tinges at times. We move to a gentle rootsy slice of Americana with the reminiscing `Another Memory`.
`Somebody Else’s Problem` has a rhythmic pulsing beat and is a song about moving on in a relationship and glad their partner`s somebody`s else`s dilemma now. There`s a cracking guitar solo on this number that for me had an American West Coast vibe. Title track `Fighting With Your Shadow` has an echoey percussive beat, intricate guitar chords and is a dreamy reflection on self-examination and life.
`Sleepwalking` is a bluesy slow burn quite somnambulistic as the title suggests, delightfully laid back where less is definitely more. Folky blues country rock is how I’d tag `Nothing To Prove` which has harmonica hues bringing the voice of a generation Dylan to mind.
The fast paced upbeat `Best Times` with is rolling cadence is wonderfully narrative and kind of reaffirms that the storyteller is living for the present and it`s a golden time to be alive. We have a wonderfully contemplative offering with `Face In The Mirror` where the narrator`s knowledge and learning has been gained from constant travelling and life experiences. A reflective introspective submission.
`Morning Sun` is a real rocker, a foot tapping driving song with organ tones interspersed throughout which conveys a sense of movement and momentum. Leaving the past behind and moving on is at the heart of the absorbed `By The Time The Tales Are Told` a rhythmic roots rock composition.
Mark Mulholland leaves us with an amusing satire on country music with the banjo ridden `A Country Song`. It`s full of tongue-in-cheek clichés and curses equating a life lived to a substandard country song.
I loved `Fighting With Your Shadow` which was filled with melodic earworms and lyrical content that only comes from a lifetime of knowledge and lived experience. It seems as if Mark Mulholland is always on the move and he has another album ready for release recorded with Australian drummer and multi-instrumentalist Chris Hughes, which will come out later this year.
Nevertheless, grab hold of a copy of `Fighting With Your Shadow` and engage with what Steve Earle would refer to as one of the last of the hard core troubadours, you know it makes sense.
Rating 9/10
