Luke Roberts - Sunlit Cross (Thrill Jockey) 2016
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Luke Roberts is a traveler. From Nashville to Montana to Cambodia and Kenya, he has spent his life accumulating the light and dark that exist in his music. Inspired by his time in Africa, Sunlit Cross is a minimalistic lullaby that, in the words of Roberts, pits darkness, disenchantment and the ugly side of life against levity, love and childhood. Roberts’ simplicity is divine in its balance of melancholy and sublime beauty; he is a singer-songwriter cut from the cloth of Townes Van Zandt and Guy Clark. Joined by Kurt Vile, John Neff and Creston Spiers, a sense of sincerity and innate devotion to honest storytelling is present throughout every song. Just as a Southern sunset peeks through the fall hues of a blackjack oak, Sunlit Cross intertwines emotions to create nostalgic bliss.