Jose Gonzalez - Veneer

Veneer is the debut album by Swedish-born minstrel Jos Gonzlezalready a certified quiet-is-the-new-loud legend in his native Sweden. Who needs bells and whistles (outside of a forlorn trumpet and some subliminal percussion) when songs are this strong and the voice is this perfect? When all that you need to hold an audience in blissful rapture is what you can balance on a barstool? Joses sensual, sensitive, powerful vocals and supernaturally gifted guitar playing truly recalls artists like Nick Drake, Elliott Smith, Hayden, and Mark Kozelek. Hes earned the accolades by writing incredible songs and staying true to his heart, keeping the songs barebones simple. MOJO: ""Dark, still, yet oddly powerful elliptical folk songs that suggest Paul Simons Duncan or John Martyns Solid Air adrift in Arthur Russells "World of Echo"." UNCUT: ""Mentioning a new artist in the same breath as Nick Drake has become shorthand for anyone with an acoustic guitar who favors melancholy restraint. Such a comparison, however, only hints at the talents of Jose Gonzalez. The Swedish singer-songwriter marries Drakes mournful minimalism to deftly picked, Latino guitar. The results melodic purity, a mesmeric rhythmic drive and stark emotionalism are extraordinary." Daily Telegraph: "It`s not just the dreamily introspective vocal and minor key melodies, the 11 songs of Veneer are all powered by Gonzales`s mazily intricate guitar picking. He cites a mix of Beatles, flamenco, bossa nova and classical as his influences, but it`s old Nick who springs to mind[a] melancholy mood leavened by a very Drake-like fondness for playing cat and mouse with the beat."

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