David Wilcox - Open Hand

Genre singer-songwriter Publisher What Are Records External Links Official David Wilcox Website David Wilcox MySpace

If you’ve heard songs by mainstream acoustic singer-songwriter Jack Johnson, chances are you’ll have an idea of what his Californian counterpart, David Wilcox sounds like. His new disc Open Hand is very much in the same vein with the exception of being much less commercial.

It’s no dispute that Wilcox has talent. All his songs are an extension of his heart and soul. His lyric ability is on par if not better than most of his counterparts. One thing that does separate his writing is he has a knack for setting up stories few others can. For example on “River Run Dry” as he sings, “There's a river down from Ghost Ranch New Mexico/ Left by torrents that tore through here long ago/ It carved out sculpture and left this show/ When the canyon floor is dry.” As is evident, he has the uncanny ability to create a picture through the listener’s imagination much like a novelist would.

Another strong point Wilcox has going for him is the array of topics included in the disc. This will range from his experiences in “Winter at the Shore”, his own personal ideologies such as in “Red Eye” and the state of society in “Modern World.”

Each and every one of his songs are crafted with sheer emotion and it shows -- except for one. “Captain Wanker” kicks off the final third of the disc and seems completely out of place both musically and lyrically. It is a fast pace song (for Wilcox.) It is an incredibly silly and absurd song with lyrics like “Captain Wanker V.I.P./ A better man than all of the rest/ Captain Wanker stands for me The W is on my chest” This song honestly seems more suited for a Red Hot Chili Peppers song with its bizarre, quirky lyrics than an acoustic singer-songwriter’s. With that being said though, had there been more personality and mood changes within the album other than “Captain Wanker,” it could’ve made for a more interesting album.

The glaring problem David Wilcox has more than anything else is the fact that almost every single song on Open Hand sounds just like the one before it. There are no tempo or vocal changes to be found on the disc. Every song ranges from slow acoustic ballad to slower acoustic ballad. Vocally, Wilcox has a mid-range, and so he hardly ever lowers or raises his pitch on the album.

Simply put, the music on Open Hand, despite David Wilcox’s excellent lyric writing, will put anyone to sleep by the third track. Musically, there is no sense of change on the album outside of “Captain Wanker” which, honestly, Wilcox should have kept to himself.