Annabel Mehran
's black-and-white cover photo for
Steve Gunn
's
The Unseen In Between
is a portrait of the guitarist and songwriter seemingly on the move. It evokes those found on early- to mid-'60s recordings by
Bob Dylan
,
Koerner, Ray & Glover
Jackson C. Frank
Bert Jansch
, and others.
Gunn
has shifted his focus considerably. Rather than simply showcase his dazzling guitar playing, he delivers carefully crafted, uncharacteristically tight and well-written songs with guitars, keyboards, strings, reeds -- and percussion -- translating them without artifice or instrumental disguise.
's also a more confident, capable singer than he was on 2016's
Eyes on the Lines
and it shows. He places his voice at the center of producer/guitarist
James Elkington
's beautifully layered, multi-textured mix.
enlisted
Tony Garnier
Dylan
's bassist of 30 years as his musical director, along with
Elkington
(who also contributes guitars, harmonica, and keyboards), drummer
T.J Mainani
, keyboardist
Daniel Schlett
, string players
Macie Stewart
and
Lia Kohl
, and clarinetist
Jacob Daneman
. Opener "New Moon" commences with an acoustic guitar and bassline delivering a syncopated psych-folk vamp before a heavily reverbed electric guitar paints over them both. His delivery walks the line between folk, blues, and psychedelia as the tune unfolds its suggestive, fleeting landscapes and emotional states. "Vagabond," inspired by
Agnes Varda
's tragic 1985 film of the same name, features
Meg Baird
on backing vocals; its winding psychedelic country rock recalls the feel present on
Jansch
's early-'70s Los Angeles period albums
L.A. Turnaround
Santa Barbara Honeymoon
. It also clues us in to a particular strength in
's writing process: His songs offer sometimes complex yet relatable narratives that seem to be overheard stories from the lives of others, not confessional directives. Only "Stonehurst Cowboy," the shortest, sparsest tune on the set, does that with its searing, poignant, folk elegy for his late father. A lone fingerpicked steel string guitar and
Garnier
's upright bass are his only accompanists. "Luciano" is a pillowy, lilting nearly Baroque folk narrative about the relationship between a bodega owner and his cat. "New Familiar" utilizes a hypnotic drone and repetitive single-string guitar lines done raga style to introduce a sprawling, labyrinthine rock number, while "Lightning Field" uses the inspiration of artist
Walter De Maria
's installation of 400 stainless steel poles to evoke a stinging psych tune that recalls the
Dream Syndicate
and the
Meat Puppets
circa
Up on the Sun
with a killer lead break. "Morning Has Mended" offers multi-tracked vocals, shimmering cymbals, and an open-tuned 12-string to deliver a gauzy, seductive dream song. On
's guitar is the hub on which his songs turn, but it's not their centerpiece. For guitar fans, there's an abundance of fine playing here, but the songwriter's aesthetic shift delivers listeners his most consistent album to date. ~ Thom Jurek