SIÔN RUSSELL JONES – Lost No More (Sarj)

LostNoMoreFifty years ago Siôn Russell Jones would have been an instant star with an album like this. It doesn’t work like that of course, we’ve all heard too much music not to spot the influences but this is still a fine album.

Lost No More is brilliantly produced by Gordon Mills Jr. but Siôn is into minimal sleeve notes so I can’t tell you who else appears on the record apart from vocalist Lillian Todd-Jones. The songs are certainly arresting. He’s been likened at times to Simon & Garfunkel and he has something of the young Paul Simon’s vocal style and feeling for melody. Some of his lyrics could have come from the same source – “Unholy ghost, lend me your grace” he sings on ‘Unholy Ghost’.

The opener and single, ‘Best Of Me’, has piano, hand percussion and multi-tracked backing vocals over Siôn’s acoustic guitar. It sounds almost orchestral without the use of conventional instruments – dense and somehow overbearing – and is a technique that is employed elsewhere to equally good effect. In contrast, the title track is built over two acoustic guitars with an almost classical continuo under a spiky lead. ‘Guillotine’, on which Siôn is joined by Todd-Jones, has wonderful echoey percussion and handclaps on the chorus and is followed by ‘Bluebird’ which sounds totally unlike any song mentioning bluebirds should with a deliberately tacky sounding synth and big drums.

Lost No More is an album that doesn’t sound the way it looks and should be approached with an open mind and a sense of adventure. It will be worth the trip.

Dai Jeffries

Artist’s website: www.sionrusselljones.com

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