Fionn Regan Album Review
After an unfamiliar style and sound emerged from Fionn Regan’s 2010 release The Shadow of an Empire, numerous loyal fans appeared to be left in a “Dylan-gone-electric” state.
The swooping vocals and baroque-esque finger picking were replaced by a sound highly reminiscent of Ryan Adams’ “Cold Roses” phase. In his third full-length album, 100 Acres of Sycamore, Regan has revived his delicate songtelling and introduced listeners to a permeating orchestral element. The majority of the nature-driven album was written in a small coastal village on the Spanish island of a small coastal village on the northern ridge of the Spanish island of Majorca. Fionn’s trademark pizzicato plucking (so aptly heard in “The Underwood Typewriter”) is now reintroduced with resonating violins to create an all-encompassing atmosphere similar to the serene environment where 100 Acres of Sycamore was written.
The album proudly displays its versatility with the ominous title track resembling a former Fleet Foxes “Blue Ridge Mountains” sound, to the playful doo doo’s in “For a Nightingale”. Subtle backing vocals from The Staves, a folk rock trio of sisters from Wortham, England, are heard throughout the album accompanying Regan on soft spoken ballads like North Star Lover where Regan’s voice seems sincerely effortless and fragile enough to break in two. But it never does.
As Lake District crescendos towards the chorus we are reminded of the power Regan can put forth while boldly professing his love through perfectly aligned instrumentation and vocals. “Let others publish our thoughts/take my hand and we will waltz/”. His lyrical craftsmanship is ever present in this album as he consistently paints an elaborate and compelling visual that allows one to feel the dirt under his feet, the smell of the trees he’s walking between, and the tranquility of the house he’s where he’s snowed in for themselves.
Regan has risen up with 100 Acres of Sycamore to prove that this is not the end of history for the ethereal tones, intricate patterns, and crisp-air vocals we once knew.
