Skip to main content
[COSMIC FOLK] On 2014's Starlit, Jackson Boone introduced himself via a transmission from somewhere far above the Earth. Drawing on the trippy-dippy ends of '60s psych-folk revivalism, the singer-songwriter's debut was transfixing in its weightlessness, levitating on a exquisitely layered bed of guitars, celestial strings and melodies sung in his faux-British accent. Natural Changes, Boone's second album in a little over a year, is more of a companion piece to its predecessor than a follow-up, ever so much more lush and dreamy, but with an eye back toward the terrestrial world. Recorded at the Oregon Coast, it opens with the sound of waves lapping against the shore, and many of its best moments are marked by a lovely pastoralism. Songs drift by at the pace of a cloud crossing the face of the moon, but the production, once again from Riley Geare of Unknown Mortal Orchestra, keeps the experience immersive enough that the album never turns into psychedelic wallpaper, even as a few tracks flow a bit too seamlessly into one another. Highlights include the acid-daydream "The Dolphin Turned Into a Cat" and the concluding title track, sure to be adopted as the go-to wedding song for crystal healers everywhere.
SEE IT: Jackson Boone plays Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi Ave., with Wampire and Cat Hoch, on Wednesday, Sept. 9. 9 pm. $5. 21+.
Willamette Week