The last time a Villagers album made this
list was with their (his? I think it’s just Conor O’Brien and a revolving cast)
excellent 2010 debut, Becoming a Jackal. It placed a healthy 8th that year (as well as being Mercury Music Prize nominated – a comparable
honour, I’d say). Not sure why, but although I’ve revisited Becoming a
Jackal on occasion, I never sought out albums 2 through 4 or even realised
they existed. Album 5 got on my radar after a podcast recommendation, and it
shows a notable song-writing progression from where I left O’Brien 11 years
ago. With Fever Dreams, he is venturing well beyond the slight
indie-folk of his early work, while also keeping simplicity as the
nucleus. The tracks here are melodic and beautiful, taking a folk template but
then adding light touches of jazz, lounge, pop and soul. They often meander but
will snap back to a melody or catchy line, meaning things never get bogged down
while O’Brien is playing about with form. Delicate but deep, and with the odd
curveball (the last third of the otherwise beautiful ‘Circles in the Firing
Line’ is suddenly a sweary punk refrain). There’s only one misstep: the opening
salvo mini-track ‘Something Bigger’ is a jarring and ill-judged entry point. That aside, this is a
charming and adventurous collection of songs.