Nowhere Now Here

There’s a grainy picture of a country road gracing the cover of this album, its winding curves stretching far into the distance.It’s an apposite metaphor for the record’s scope and content, for rarely has an emotional landscape been so well mapped. I know nothing of Broadie or his previous work, save that he has been (and still is) a recording engineer in both the U.K. and Australia, where he now resides.

On this evidence it won’t be long before people are familiar with his work, for this is perhaps the finest collection of songs I’ve heard since I got my hands on the debut album from Peter Rowan over 20 years ago. The map references are obvious – Mike Scott and Dylan for starters – but never overplayed. ‘After It’s Over’ is the story of an affair-transient, sure, but the narrator seeks reassurance that it had some meaning – ”After it’s over,will you remember that I’ve saved a place for you in my heart”. As for the rest, every song is a gem of various hues, each one demanding to be listened to over and over. Guitars shine and shimmer in support, lazy fiddles weave their way in and out, but nothing takes away from the strength of these cracking songs. It’s early days yet, but maybe, just maybe, a new prophet has arrived.