Album Review | Thorin Loeks & The Dreamy In This Place
As far as the romanticized folk musician/wanderer tale goes, Thorin Loeks embodies it tenfold, and the results are evident in his homely, dreamy new LP, In This Place. The Canadian grew up working outdoor gigs with guitar in tow, including a stint prospecting for gold in the Yukon territory. He’s backpacked across South America, cycled across North America, and paddled 3,800 km down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico; travel, people, and nature are in his blood.
Music-wise, there were releases in between his envious adventures across the world. 2016’s Thirsty Hearts was followed by Shine Through the Dark in 2017, and some sporadic singles have appeared in the time leading up to the release of this new LP.
The 10-track collection captures different phases of Loeks’s life journey through the reassuring presence of his music, and his vocal delivery resembles Canada’s beloved Gordon Lightfoot, and a little Bryan Ferry, through its majestic flow and detailed lyrical content.
The scene-setting ‘Intro’ conjures up autumnal imagery and natural wonder with its warm plucking and soothing string accompaniment. Doubling down on this mix is ‘Open Sky’ with robust playing and emotionally swelling backing instrumentation. ‘Tonight’ is a solemn promise of a better tomorrow, while ‘With You’ is a forlorn pondering about lost love and regret.
Loeks’s connection to nature is abundantly apparent on the album, and different ambient sounds from an array of settings were incorporated into the mix. ‘Intro’ is cushioned by a softly flowing stream, ‘Tonight’ features lapping waves, ‘Still Here’ has a meditative drone, and ‘Let it Rain’ sounds, of course, wet.
“My new album, ‘In This Place’ is about meaningfully connecting with people, communities, and the land, but also with oneself. The world can be challenging, painful, and confusing in so many ways, but I am starting to gain a greater understanding of my own journey through life. The meaning, emotional depth, and gratitude I have imbued in this album while drawing upon different genres of music, hopefully, reflects that.” – Thorin Loeks
