27 September 2022
On his fifth and latest solo effort, Dan Imhoff once again weaves in elements of folk, jazz, pop, roots and Americana for a satisfying record that is tied together perfectly with charming, literate lyrics.
Recorded last fall in Valencia and Gerona, Spain – working with Spanish musicians – the California native wrote a bulk of the 12 songs here during the global pandemic. As Imhoff writes in the liner notes, “I left Spain in March of 2020 with plans to quickly return. Things Didn’t exactly work out that way. Most of these songs were written in Northern California over the intervening 18 months, which included isolation of the Covid pandemic and the evacuation of the Walbridge wildfire.”
But don’t expect another Covid album filled with songs about loneliness and fear. Surprisingly, Gratitude is aptly titled with hits of promise throughout. The title song which opens the record, is a beautiful, soul-drenched track that perfectly sets up what’s to follow. Imhoff’s voice evokes a warmness that carries throughout the album. Songs like “There There” and “Factory Of Tangled Dreams,” are among some of his strongest solo offerings yet. The album closes on the wistful “Angel Touching Down,” a slow tempo track that unravels like a dream.
Coming together after more than a year of worldwide societal isolation, Gratitude is the definition of a global effort - written in California, recorded in Spain and mastered in Berlin.
John B. Moore has been covering the seemingly disparate, but surprisingly complimentary genres of Americana and punk rock for the past 20 years.
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