Son Little Cityfolk
Son Little’s new album, Cityfolk, reflects his heritage. His house in Atlanta flooded, and, due to a variety of other circumstances, he ended up recording in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, where he connected with Alabama Shakes’ Ben Tanner.
“Just by showing up, it brought something out,” Son Little explains. “I realized, in moving here, that my mother’s people all came from this area, from South Carolina, Georgia–I thought a lot about how interesting it was that I would just sort of gravitate and migrate to a place where I had history.”
He adds, “Sometimes the spirits will guide you to a place when you don’t even know you don’t know why you found yourself there.”
Cityfolk, a collection of 11 tracks, was produced by Son Little and Ben Tanner. The pair also engineered and mixed the album, which was recorded at Sun Drop Sound & Red River Recordings. The assistant engineer was Austin Morrow, and Ryan Smith mastered the album at Sterling Sound.
Frequently pigeonholed as a ‘roots musician,’ Son Little says, “The industry likes to keep artists in little boxes, and for Black artists it has meant being defined by your proximity to ‘urban. But my music has always had flashes of country, rock, and folk, as well as hip-hop, blues, and R&B. So I’ve always struggled as an artist who kind of, I think, lives in the spaces between genres.”
High points on the album include the banjo-driven “Rabbit,” with its deliciously affecting, thumping beat. The shuffling texture of the percussion, complemented by a fat, rounded bassline, infuses the tune with low-slung, abrasive yet animating veneers.
A personal favorite because of its witchy, voluptuous flow, “Whip the Wind” travels on a sensuous Afro-Latin rhythm – cool and slinky. Son Little’s vocals – smooth and evocative – narrate his frustration with love.
There’s a gooey, drifting, bluesy sensation to “Bottomless” that’s both satisfying and vaguely reminiscent of Bill Withers – deep, a bit slow, and expressive of profound emotions.
“Keep digging never get to the bottom of us / Come near me, can u hear me / Screaming at the top of my lungs / If we get along or not / Keep digging never get to the bottom of love.”
There’s a gospel swampiness to the dark and resonant “The Valley,” which shifts to more luminous colors on the chorus. The mood and feel of the song alternates from one extreme to another, imbuing the tune with a wonderful side-by-side aura.
The darkest song on the album, “Paper Children,” confronts the plight of the downtrodden, who involuntarily and inevitably become heirs to poverty and lifetimes devoid of hope.
With its understated, declarative beauty, CITYFOLK owns itself from the beginning, an epiphanic blend that oozes persona.
Discover more about Son Little here.