Album Review: Luke De-Sciscio - 'Extended folk boy playlist'

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The latest project from UK based singer-songwriter and beloved folk treasure, Luke De-Sciscio, shows the artist wanting to expand even further on his already beautifully built world. ‘Extended folk boy playlist’ is the humble title of the newest collection of songs, following 2020’s stream of albums that formed ‘The Folk Boy Trilogy’.

 

What sets Luke De-Sciscio apart from many of his contemporaries in the folk-sphere is his approach to the music. There aren’t many bells and whistles- just a guitar and an impressive array of vocal abilities on display. It shows a true love and understanding of folk’s origins, the age-old artist need to sit down, lean on someone’s shoulder and express their musings through pure poetry and song.

The opening track, ‘Pulling On Each Other (LOL)’ is a subtly catchy piece of fingerpicked folk with a guitar riff so memorable that it’ll stick with you for a while. Mr. Moore shows Luke waxing on current affairs, singing about a man’s death, being thankful it wasn’t “COVID” that took him. Despite the sudden anxiety spike that most people probably feel whenever that word appears, there’s a meditative quality to this track, and it lies within Luke’s confidence to linger in a sustained vibrato, taking his sweet time and letting the words hang in the air. Because time is either all we have these days, or unfortunately not for some, so why not meditate to the sound of a heavenly voice? We probably need it.

‘An Uneasy Paradise’ is one of his most beautiful songs to date. The melodies are simply to die for, lifting and falling gently with an ache in his presentation. ‘Nothing the King’ is also gorgeous for similar reasons, but is actually one of the most delicately interesting folk songs I’ve heard in a while. The melodies here are reminiscent of traditional folk, so much so that you feel like you should be sat at Arthur’s Round Table with a bottle of red wine. Luke’s ability to flip between chest and head voice on this track is also remarkable, creating a wild cry drenched in devastation.

Songs like ‘Navigation Signs and Serene (Will I be alone?)’ are tender acoustic guitar driven cuts that have a spacey element to them similar to the likes of RY X, making you feel as though you’re amidst a snowy mountain range at night, overlooking a forest of evergreen and feeling the spirituality of nature. ‘Serene’ also contains some fascinating psychedelic chord progressions that call back to the greats of the 1960s/70s such as Linda Perhacs.

‘The Change’ closes the project. This is possibly the driest and most upfront we hear Luke’s voice in this set of tracks. It feels like the most natural way to end the experience and is undeniable one of his most outright gorgeous tunes yet. He sings about moving between ‘temporary heavens’, which is ironically exactly how listening to his stream of albums over the past year has felt.

If you’re into your philosophical, poetic waxing on life, love, spirituality and the human condition through a lens of sardonic wit, then you mustn’t miss Luke’s latest work. And if you’re looking to become a superfan of someone new, I’d even say: start from the beginning and enjoy the ride - the musical ascension into heaven.

Words of Curtis Saunders