This Swedish folk singer has done it again. Kristian Matsson of The Tallest Man on Earth has managed to create another beautiful, sincere, and bare album. Bare not necessarily in a bad way, but quite the opposite. This album has been getting nothing but good reviews from nearly every blog that has payed attention to it. It was released earlier this month, shortly after the single “The King of Spain.” He is a truly talented singer and instrumentalist. His guitar playing is never overpowering or showy, but rather it is easy on the ears and graceful. Kristian Mattson has never been able to escape, for even a second the quick comparisons to Bob Dylan the industry and fans have been giving him. This album probably isn’t going to help him get away from it either. His music is simple, often never more than just a guitar and voice but its enough. I believe its actually better that way. Very few things are more beautiful and genuine that a singer just playing a guitar. It makes it hard to hide insincerity. If you add a lot of instruments that are often unnecessary it makes it easier to cover up falsehoods within the music. This is why I believe Kristian is so good at what he does. He uses the bareness in his music to his advantage. He sings of mostly basic things: nature, Ideas, love, music, and life. But it’s hard to miss the substance behind it all.
