I often think that it must be hard to be Chris Thomas King—to have a restless musical imagination that prompts him to explore a host of styles and the chops to excel in all of them. What do you do? Deny the competing impulses and hew to one path, or follow them all and produce a body of work that seems scattered as a result? Add to that the way O Brother Where Art Thou imprinted him on the public consciousness as Tommy Johnson and you’ve got the recipe for frustration: a lot of excellent music in front of an audience that has a hard time focusing on who or what he is.
Antebellum Postcards succeeds because, unlike some previous albums, it doesn’t sound forced. At times, his recordings have seemed agenda-driven, propelled by a desire to showcase one side or another of his take on the blues. On his first studio album since 2006’s Rise, he employs his many gifts as they’re needed. His pop/funk/rock sense shows up in “I Wanna Be Your Drug,” but the mad, dramatic solo ties it to a number of quieter, gentler tracks, as do gently commercial production touches. Everything’s got a touch of gloss on it, not to tart the songs up but to help them realize their potential. “Caught In Between,” for example, goes on for five minutes with no signs of stress as he sings with an air of warm vulnerability, punctuating the sweet backing with sizzling lead fills.
The sweeping, semi-acoustic sound sits comfortably next to updates of antique blues/folk songs including “Wayfaring Stranger” and “I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow.” King’s not asking the audience to roll back the clock with him; he’s doing what most performers did when they touched those songs. He puts his own 21st-Century stamp on them, and the results rock when they should and distinguish themselves easily from the other versions.
It’s tempting to say that King has embraced the importance of the electric guitar in his songs and dub that the difference maker, but it’s probably simpler than that. On Antebellum Postcards, he’s embraced the strongest elements in his art and figured out how to make them all fit together. If he’s trying hard, he doesn’t let it show.
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