Releasing an album as multifarious as this Italian singer-songwriter’s latest comes with its fair share of mountains to climb. Some might claim that with the broad range of influences across the entirety of the roots spectrum present song-per-song on Luca Bash’s Keys of Mine that he lacks focus or direction. If not, others might just well say that it simply would’ve been better off taking one concerted direction and running with it.
While these sorts of voices may ring true throughout many releases, in this case, they would be missing the same sort of brilliant that dusts itself across recent outputs this side of artists like Martin Sexton. These are songwriters who have already put in their dues with largely acoustic, soulful rock-based affairs in the past, but are now moving forward to show the full breadth of what they can do without any apologetic strings attached.
Hot off the heels of releasing two such albums in a row just a couple of years back, it’s time for Bash to spread his wings and try and fashion himself for a convincing flight. The overarching sense here is that the record is a celebration, with genre influences melding together in as far-reaching fusions as reggae and rock, or jazz, folk, and the blues.
He never quite loses his sense of joy or any of the energy that bursts from the seams of ‘Backstage’ all the way through album closer ‘Upwind’. His passion for music is as effervescent as it is obvious, and for anyone looking for a good listen with some real heart put into it, they could do a lot worse than lending Luca their ear.