Joshua Radin的第四张专辑。尽管在上张2010年发行的专辑《The Rock and the Tide》,Joshua玩起了电吉他摇滚,但是在这张新砖中,他又回到了前两张专辑的沉静的民谣作品。
Joshua Radin moved toward a more electric rock sound on 2010's The Rock and the Tide, but on 2012's Underwater he returns to the hushed and sincere singer/songwriter pop that filled his first two albums. A melodic, countrified album buoyed by some light orchestral touches, Underwater largely showcases Radin's vocals set against gently strummed acoustic guitar. However, it also doesn't hurt that Radin brought in a supergroup of backing musicians for this effort, including pianist Benmont Tench (Tom Petty), drummer Jim Keltner (Bob Dylan), organist Roger Joseph Manning, Jr. (Jellyfish), and others. While Radin has a slight voice that he keeps at something just above a whisper much of the time, his vocal lines are still bright and pleasant. Tracks like the rambling &Let It Go& and the intimate &Five and Dime& are infectious nuggets of heartfelt and twangy folk-pop that stick in your head. Tracks like the leadoff &Tomorrow Is Gonna Be Better& and &Anywhere Your Love Goes,& with their sweeping, cinematic string flourishes, have a '60s baroque vibe, and bring to mind the work of such artists as Sea Change-era Beck and earlier icons like Nick Drake. Elsewhere, we get a bevy of catchy, laid-back anthems that find Radin delving into a womb-like, late-afternoon space of melancholy emotions and sun-drenched ennui. While Radin may lean toward a kind of a sadness on Underwater, there is a current of positivity running through his work here that permeates most tracks. On &Let It Go,& he croons &Put the top down drive to the sea/Leave the city lights behind me/Let it go/Feel the sun shine on my face/Took some time but I found my place by letting go.& If you let yourself go and let Radin's songs wash over you, Underwater will most likely carry you out to sea with a smile on your face.