Jose Gonzalez
Veneer

THE REVIEW

On one of the rare occasions that I found myself glancing at the TV, I had a revelation. It was a Sony commercial where a sea of colored balls were seen bouncing down with a musical background that instantly captivated me without hesitation. I began my search: it was the song "Heartbeats" by the Swedish electro-pop duo The Knife, covered by Jose Gonzalez, a Swede from Gothenburg with Argentine parents. I bought the album "Veneer" and experienced an extraordinary attraction. Many are the imitators of Nick Drake or those who refer to him, but here we are almost facing a Buddhist reincarnation. Jose Gonzalez plays the guitar just like Nick, with a delicate yet elaborate fingerpicking, with sequences of atypical chords and harmonic textures, an open and virtuosic arpeggio and a voice often whispered like Drake’s, with the same disenchanted timbre.
Eleven stunning tracks for about thirty minutes of songs at a very high level. The album is recorded live, offering us vast acoustic sonorities: you can sense the wooden resonance of rosewood and resin, in a work of sublime and precious craftsmanship. The aging of the body and the nylon of the strings become perceptible.

This is not an album: this is a minimalist fresco where a clap in (Love Stain), timid and hinted percussion in (Stay in the shade), and a trumpet in (Broken Arrow) almost cause a startle. For the rest, the six strings become sonic brushes for a strong transience and warm tones marked by melancholy and yearning akin to Watteau’s (1684-1721) canvases, the French painter. The quiet voice and skilled fingers on the keyboard narrate stories of tormenting romanticism and outline a state of grace set to music. Never have I listened to an album as flawless and perfect as this "Veneer": tracks that reveal themselves as true sung Haikus evoking inaccessible immateriality in a true sophisticated aesthetic triumph; an ode to thoughtfulness, in a hypnotic and seductive sound flow.

If I were the author, I would have titled it "Festina Lente", hurry slowly, as time expands even in rapid expressive urgencies. Guys, this Jose Gonzalez, with his dark cadences, his bare intimacy, his melancholic talent, his tormented quest, his subtle inquietude, displays a dazzling songwriter vocation and a timeless artistic tension in a fascinating compendium of beauty. It is difficult to choose something and make a selection; I could point out the second track "Remain", an example of Caetanovelosa bossanova or "Hints" the ninth track, vaguely hinted similar-blues or "Stay in the shade" and "Broken Arrow" where a truly resurrected Nick Drake is imperiously felt. But everything is valid in this album released, or rather republished in 2005, which continues to sell slowly thanks to constant word of mouth. It’s a bit like what happened with Damien Rice; and here we are faced with the same charisma and talent. Those who don’t have it yet, hurry to acquire this dark, yet welcoming Swedish-Argentine melody that will pleasantly tear your soul.

To describe Beauty, Baudelaire wrote: "I am beautiful, oh mortals, like a dream of stone" and here one remains petrified by enchanting dreamlike vertigo. "My moves are slow; but soon they I'll know / we'll keep on whispering our mantras" from "Slow Moves". Woe to anyone who doesn't listen to this triumph of musical aesthetics, this sound ecstasy that will intoxicate you, lightening the existential burden that sometimes weighs on your shoulders, this troubled yet bright gift from the gods, this extremely charming and beneficial catharsis of Apollonian and Dionysian mixed in a measured balance. Like a new Eurydice, I found myself attracted by Jose-Orpheus the enchanting with his gentle sensitivity: I heard and followed his celestial song of suffering, starting to escape from the hell of meaningless musical conformity. So? What are you going to do? Come on! Once, listen to me and follow my advice. Get "Veneer" and you'll be grateful to me for life. Signed, Laurafiesolana/substantial and never in vain!!! Happy Listening, folks!

P.S. I apologize to JohnOfPatmos the first reviewer of this album. I read his beautiful work; but I didn’t feel I could refrain from sharing my personal emotion. The urge was too strong. I hope he understands!