A first collaboration between prolific British musician/songwriter Richard Youngs and in-demand Spanish producer Raül Refree.
I think I first became aware of Soft Abuse off the back of the Mad Nanna 7”s they put out some years back. Since then, I’ve fallen in love with everything I’ve heard from the label, specialising in intriguing music that could be labelled folk-inflected or outsider (for lack of better terms), from Pumice, to Pigeons, to Donavan Quinn, to the recent Thistle Group 7”. ‘All Hands Around the Moment’ holds a special spot within this pantheon. Another album by the prolific and ever-exciting Richard Youngs, this time with the help of Raül Refree (perhaps best known outside of Europe for his work producing the last few Lee Ranaldo albums). At the risk of coming across a bit too flowery, this particular release feels like staring into a set of mandalas. Four long songs that seem to cyclically unspool with poetic lyrics and intricately composed instrumental backing, each guitar pluck, bass line, and piano plink densely knotted within one another. Every note feels like it holds an intended space within each track but never feels stale or over-rehearsed. An album of great craft and care! -Mitch