Album Review: Matthew Santos – “Into the Further”

In a folk scene in threat of becoming stagnant in the face of major label commercialization, even Mumford & Sons are trying to reinvent themselves. Nobody wants to listen to the same Lumineers song over and over again, but if you’re the kind of music listener who just needs an acoustic guitar and some raw, rusty vocals to have a good time, you’re in luck: two time Grammy nominee Matthew Santos has recorded an eclectic, often surprising folk record that is as adventurous as it is soulful and organic.

Into the Further begins with a vaguely-psychedelic introduction that showcases Santos’ tight rhythm section — who go on to provide the record with some of its most memorable moments — with some jazz-influenced percussion that I wouldn’t have been surprised to hear Kendrick Lamar rapping over on his recent experimental opus To Pimp a Butterfly. “Ojos” on the other hand sounds like Timberland producing an Amnesiac-era Radiohead joint, as some skittery beatboxing propels the song’s dreamy synth textures towards a soulful, beautiful climax.

Santos doesn’t start singing until the record’s third song, but “Under the Microscope” is as fine a moment to step up to the mic as any; it’s more straightforward but as equally lovely as anything that’s preceded it so far, a sprightly folk pop tune with a plucked double bass that brings to mind the comfortable arrangements of Andrew Bird, or perhaps Sufjan Stevens in one of his better moods. Less comfortable is the moody “Seven Years”, which finds Santos over a track that is all fire and brimstone, its ominous bass line chasing Santos around as if he’s trailing gasoline. The tension breaks as the band transitions into “It All Works Out” without missing a beat, although Santos seems less than relieved as he belts out the song’s titular consolation.

While many of these songs could have been performed solely by Santos and his acoustic guitar, the singer’s simple folk tunes are elevated to a higher standing thanks to the brass and string arrangements of Matt Ulery, whose utilization of weeping violins and foggy horns help make songs like “White Gloves” and “End of the Pipeline” such compelling and enveloping successes. Santos and his arrangements manage great chemistry, as his liquidy falsetto winds and twists among the string to deliver some truly arresting vocal moments.

With Into the Further, Santos has crafted a record that showcases his versatile talents as a singer, songwriter and performer. While any folk artist can learn their way around an acoustic guitar, Santos proves capable of commanding a variety of more complex sound palettes to deliver cathartic results the likes of which every artist in his field should strive for.