Cornerstone Festival and Made in Mexico Records introduced us to Johnathon Ford's new musical idea, Unwed Sailor, a couple years ago, with a buzz performance and a striking EP called Firecracker, respectively. Even more time spent at JPUSA in service to the needy, communal fellowship, and introspective inspiration has yielded new stories to tell for the ex-Roadside Monument bassist, and a new refreshed, studied way to tell them on The Faithful Anchor. The challenge with doing instrumental rock is that you have to tap into something deeper in your audience than the standard pop ethos, and you must do so quickly. Joe Satriani, Trans Am, Don Caballero, etc. are modern rock composers that made names for themselves by mastering this post-modern miracle. Many others, who will remain unnamed for lack of making a name, or any sort of lasting impression for that matter, have failed miserably. It is against the former that Unwed Sailor must be judged - no, not compared, judged - and even from that angle Ford and Nic Tse are looking strong. Like (and even beyond in some songs) the aforementioned artists, Unwed Sailor not only invite their listeners to abandon pop conditioning - they give you somewhere to rest from the weariness of transcendence. They pull you up and sit you down and tell you story after glorious story; of places, people, feelings, and lessons in your past and present and future. They speak sonic words of wisdom gently to your spirit, allowing the subjective muse to waken the place where true art dwells, and where God speaks unmuted by the evil within us. The last track on the record is a bittersweet digression, where the sudden emergence of vocals slaps and kisses us concurrently. I sometimes wish they were not there, but other times I welcome the nudge back to reality (if you can stomach calling our temporal existence any kind of 'reality' worth realizing; but whatever).
Other coverage for this album
Decapolis 2001Reviewed by Tom BastianThis is Unwed Sailor's first full-length album. "The Faithful Anchor" was released on Lovesick Records. The band is currently on tour in Europe with Brandtson. Often with music I tend to focus on the lyrics. Looking for melody and harmony in a song that I can sing to is something that often catches my attention. But Unwed Sailor seems to defy that, they offer only instruments, yet their music…Decapolis 2001Reviewed by Brett MiottiThis is Unwed Sailor's first full-length album. "The Faithful Anchor" was released on Lovesick Records. The band is currently on tour in Europe with Brandtson. Without sounding too cliché, it's not easy to say a lot without using words. That said, Unwed Sailor has a lot to say. Most of the songs on Unwed Sailor's first full-length album convey feelings of longing, despair, happiness and most…Opus 2001Reviewed by Jason MoreheadThe first track from The Faithful Anchor that I heard was a live version of "Our Nights" posted on the band's website. I was afraid that Unwed Sailor's new album would never come out, so this little taste was a welcome relief, and my friends and I gathered around some crappy computer speakers to listen to it. It's a gentle, unassuming song, like most of Unwed Sailor's music. It starts out slowly,…The Phantom Tollbooth 2001Reviewed by Jason MoreheadThe first track from The Faithful Anchor that I heard was a live version of "Our Nights" posted on the band's website. I was afraid that Unwed Sailor's new album would never come out, so this little taste was a welcome relief, and my friends and I gathered around some crappy computer speakers to listen to it. It's a gentle, unassuming song, like most of Unwed Sailor's music. It starts out slowly,…Similar sounding releases
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