Mf Tomlinson - We Are Still Wild Horses

Released: 14/04/23

MF Tomlinson returns with a new projectWe Are Still Wild Horses, released via PRAH Recordings (the Umlauts, Pozi, Donna Thompson). Where MF Tomlinson's breakthrough debut full lengthStrange Timedocumented a world in turmoil, with Tomlinson feeling cautiously optimistic about what was to come, his EPWe Are Still Wild Horsesfinds him lost in isolation, embarking on a journey into the self in search of hope and catharsis.

The carefully plucked notes that introduce Winter Time Blues are the songwriter's first tentative steps into his psyche. Like a Leonard Cohen or Richard Thompson completely shorn of hope, Tomlinson describes his daily drudgery, his voice audibly sagging at his powerlessness to carry the weight of the world's issues. Spooky synth swells, tense strings and twirling brass leer up out of the shadows like psychedelic spectres welcoming him into the grotto of his unconscious - as he sinks into a depression caused by the cold and lack of light - "After all, for Christ's sake I'm an Australian".

Uniting the symphonic complexity and lyrical acumen of Lee Hazlewood, the freedom and sonic exploration of Tortoise and Yo La Tengo and the high concept edge of David Byrne, the album draws on a swathe of psych influences - from his contemporary heroes Cate Le Bon and Weyes Blood, to acid folk legends Trees and the Canterbury folk scene (Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers) and the equivalent movement in Japan (Haruomi Hosono) - all welded together, forming arrangements that blend progressive rock and jazz á la King Crimson, making the eventual leap towards modern composition and ambient music in the vein of Brian Eno and Phillip Glass.