Review: John Moreland Finds Gentle Evolution on 'LP5'

One of the most exciting things about roots music is watching the evolution of young artists who, as they become more comfortable in their skins, begin to bring elements of their other interests into their own style. For John Moreland, the Oklahoma songwriter best known for his sparse acoustic ballads and evocative lyrics, that took the form of bringing more of his punk and hardcore background to his plugged-in breakout Big Bad Luv. Now, back with his aptly titled fifth album LP5, John Moreland evolves again.

While much of LP5 has its roots in the rough-voiced guitar and harmonica ballads of his previous albums, this is definitely a different sounding album than anything John Moreland has ever released. Much of that can be credited to his decision to bring in a producer for the first time to help him bring his vision to life. That producer, Matt Pence, is also a skilled percussionist and its these percussive moments that truly bring LP5 to life.

John Moreland has never been an artist afraid to take things slow. He's content to let a lyric hang, a chord linger, or a pause grow pregnant when the song required it. In that, he's found the perfect producer. Pence lets John Moreland be John Moreland, resisting the urge to fill those gaps with unnecessary sounds. More importantly, he is just as restrained as a percussionist as Moreland is as a singer. On many of the LP5 tracks, the percussion is beyond sparse, a couple of quick echoing wood taps here and there, a fill seemingly out of nowhere.

LP5 also sees Moreland bringing a synthesizer to his sound, although even that is as understated as the rest of the album. All of these elements come together most strikingly on one of the album's two instrumental tracks, “For Ichiro.” As the title might suggest, there's a distinctive Japanese influence here, with tinkling wooden effects, electronic trills, and mellotron rumbles that give the impression of a hidden forest on a rainy day. If you ever wondered what it would sound like if Moreland collaborated with Japanese ambient trailblazer Ryuichi Sakamoto (and who hasn't, really?), “For Ichiro” is your answer. It's a beautiful and unexpected turn.

Of course, one thing that never changes about John Moreland is his lyrics. He goes for the gut right out of the gate with album opener (and album highlight) “Harder Dreams.” The first lines of the song are “All the gods are watching wars on television. Placing their bets, and telling jokes about religion.” The rest of the song is a page right out of the Bruce Springsteen playbook of dying youth songs, as Moreland sings about youngsters “crowded in for the sins we study on silver screens” and looking forward to their graduation to “harder dreams.” As can be expected, they find the dreams harder, but not nearly as satisfying as the television made it seem.

Another lyrics stunner is “When My Fever Breaks.” Written in starts and stops over a three year period, the song is about Moreland's wife. But the long time between the song's beginning and end saw numerous transitions in their relationship, from the thrill of early dating, to some rougher times, to an acceptance of a truly “better or worse” partnership. It allows a more wide-angle view of the realities of relationships than many songs manage.

Also highly personal for Moreland is “In Times Between.” Written for his friend and fellow songwriter Chris Porter, who died in an auto accident in 2016. Trying to process his grief and loss, Moreland sings “you're swimming in the seas that are streaming from my eyes.” Going on, Moreland tells his friend “If you need me, you know where I'll be stuck... in times between.”

LP5 is an album that surprises in its differences, but surprises more in its willingness to let those differences evolve organically. This isn't a “Dylan goes electric” moment of shock. This is a John Moreland album that will please any of his fans, but also shows an artist willing to play with his formula.

John Moreland has a full slate of headlining Spring tour dates that you can find here.