Eighteen months of solid touring, Horse Thief claim, has brought the band “closer to the sound we want” on their second record ‘Trials And Truths’.
Evidently that means a marked departure from the spacious, sweeping alt-Americana that characterised their debut, the guitars slicked and tightened for a more composed, strikingly mature effort this time round.
The emotive edge that made their debut worth listening to is still there, Cameron Neal’s affectingly off-centre vocals as commanding ever, but they’ve developed their tenderness; the youthful quiver and folkish tinge have gone, kicks of honest rock and earworm hooks in their place.
At times the new record sounds utterly sublime, particularly on a sweeping opening trio of lead single ‘Another Youth’, ‘Difference’, and the career-highlight drive of ‘Drowsy’, and though there’s the occasional hint of MOR, for the most part the group stay well clear of being ordinary.
7/10
Words: Patrick Clarke
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