Neal Casal - Sweeten The Distance (2011)

Casal was the lead guitarist of Ryan Adams and the Cardinals, with whom he recorded three albums. Sweeten the distance is Casal's tenth solo record and was recorded with noted producer Thom Monahan (Devendra Banhart, Vetiver, Pernice Brothers, Gary Louris). While listeners will recognize Casal's strong yet understated vocals, his acoustic-driven melodies have been amplified by complex sonic layers, resulting in a new, expansive sound that is the culmination of this prolific songwriter's multifaceted catalog.

Sweeten The Distance flowers across my wall, mixing with those tiny bits of dust floating in the air that are never visible `til the sun's long rays are at just the right angle, and my eyes have adopted a sleepy half closed repose. By the time the first notes of "Let It All Begin" filter through the speakers my cat's curled up on my chest and is kneading away, while setting the pace for the rest of the album, and I just know I'm here for the ride, melting into the comfort of the afternoon sun with Neal Casal delivering one of the finest albums of his career.

Sweeten The Distance seems to be delivered by a protagonist laced with regret, delivered in a quiet alternative narrative, and shimmers with delight ... as if regardless of what's happened to this person, everything's worked out just right in the end. Some of the songs are a bit more uptempo than others, never the less, they all hang in the air just out of reach, finding their way straight to your heart, with the only thing better, being someone to curl up with and share this adventure.

Casal's guitar simply glitters with an effortlessness, never getting ahead of his rich tender vocals, vocals delivered with a slight twang that sounds as genuine as the day is long; and therein lies the beauty that's always been the signature of Neal Casal's best work. With this, his tenth album in sixteen years, he's paints each song with unexpected slide guitars that morph into organ arrangements, and relies on a sensitive steady backbeat to hold it all in check.