Welsh singer and guitarist Richard Thomas keeps it close to home on Purple Patch, the new album by his one-man band Mint Biscuit. He wrote a song for his nephew (The Ballad Of Golden Aidan, enjoys a cup of Chicken Soup and reminisces about getting lost for a bit during a hike Cornfield Whisper. Thomas gets out of his comfort zone when he writes about the Vikings pillaging the lands (Summer Song) or lets a girl turn into a snake (Melusine). It is a road less traveled for him, but it opens possibilities he should definitely explore more fully.
Home recordings are tricky and can sound a bit tinny, but Thomas put his guitar collection to good use, carefully choosing an instrument that fits the mood of a track. By doing so, he created a sonic palette that is decidedly lo-fi, but also on point with a level of intimacy that other artists with bigger budgets will find hard to replicate.
Purple Patch is a self-released album. Buy it from his website. A wealth of his output is available on CD via elasticstage.com.
Tracks:- Chicken Soup
- The Ballad Of Golden Aidan
- Melusine
- Summer Song
- Way Out West
- Wild Honey Blues
- Struminid For My Pluminid
- Healing Better
- Muscovado Magic
- Allonby Grasses
- Cornfield Whisper
- Overweight
- All Fingers And Strums
