‘Milk Teeth’ by Jim Evans (Album)

Jim Evans: gentle strumming and fingerpicking of the guitar help to wash away the stresses of life

Though seemingly at odds with the modern world, these striking folk songs still manage to get their own message across

Bristol’s Jim Evans returns with his second album. The follow-up to 2014’s On Seeds And Shoes is once more filled with its creator’s unique worldview and the influence of Americana and soul helps Evans to standout from the folk crowd.

Shine On Me is positively gospel with its organ and modern spirituality. Similar themes seem to hang over much of the album as Evans searches for meaning in the modern world – on Good As Golden it comes from “the grill and the pan and the open cooking pot.” The title track should strike a chord with anyone who rallies against the narcissism of social media. As childhood innocence is lost, “we hide what we do bad and boast of what good.”

The gentle strumming and fingerpicking of the guitar help to wash away the stresses of life, as does the constant use of imagery from the natural world – there’s salvation for Evans away from the city on All That I See and Half Way There.

Fans of Jackson C. Frank and early Dylan will find Milk Teeth a comforting listen, never sacrificing melody and with a subject matter that is meaty enough to bely it’s soft ambience. Evans’ return is certainly a welcome one.

Verdict: Folk songs for the modern age

Duncan Haskell

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