“The future ain’t what it used to be no more,” sings Seth Walker on the first song from his first album since the world plunged into a virus-induced darkness from which we are only just emerging. Dealing with major impacts both shared and deeply personal, I Hope I Know is the work of a confessional singer-songwriter rising up to the challenge.
Buffeted by the end of a long-term relationship followed by lockdown and contagion (and the cease in touring opportunities that came with that), Walker persevered. He first dashed off a catchy, hopeful tune about projecting confidence facing the new, worldwide challenge and then got to work on songs that portray his constant evolution as a human being.
Joining forces once again with producer Jano Rix, Walker’s 11th long player is by an artist battle-tested ready but still searching for answers and picking up clues piece by piece, just as it usually works out in real life. The title itself conveys that feeling of cautious optimism. “Hope I Know” exemplifies that yearning to be in a better spiritual place, but the first thing that stands out is Walker’s bright fingerpicking and the roots-y background harmony vocals from Walker and Allison Russell.
When Seth Walker takes on a soul-jazz vibe as he does for his lost love lament “Why Do I Cry Anymore?” his croon is a dead ringer for Jamie Cullum, and Rix’s production takes a minimalist but cool, modern approach that makes the song swagger. Depression-era jazz-pop is the mood for “Remember Me,” a new tune but with a Tin Pan Alley timeliness. Meanwhile, “Satisfy My Mind” is just a few modern touches from portraying prewar country blues, as Rix’s production deftly keeps one foot in the middle of the 20th century and another one in the here and now.
The covers here aren’t diversions but sturdy tunes that fit right into the album’s overall vibe. Bobby Charles’ “Tennessee Blues” is almost nothing but Walker’s voice and guitar, keeping it as simple as the wish for peaceful surroundings that he pines for in the song. Van Morrison’s “Warm Love” is more primal than the 1973 hit version for much of the song, then gracefully opens up halfway through. The Dylan tune “Buckets of Rain” has been fairly well covered – including by Rix’s band the Wood Brothers – and Walker approaches it with a naturally varying tempo. Instead of bass, his guitar is accompanied by a cello, a great call.
Seth Walker makes a record about finding a steady spiritual plane but he didn’t have to find his muse because he never lost it. Times have changed but in adapting to it, Walker shows that his mastery of Americana music is just as it was during the ‘old’ times.
I Hope I Know is going to drop on May 20, 2022 from The Royal Potato Family.
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