This charming ten-track record is the debut solo album by Australian multi-instrumentalist Benjamin Fletcher who has been a member of Sarah Blasko's band since 2005. Blasko returns the favour by adding backing vocals.
Fletcher modestly describes the first-take songs as "fleshed out demos" although they don't sound particularly lo-fi to my ears.
They were recorded as a kind of unplugged diary whenever time allowed during a busy tour schedule.
The basis for two of the tunes - Here Stands The Broken and Swim Through The Mouth Of The Whale were recorded in his bathroom in London!
In the notes to the video of a key track on the album he writes: "Open Up starts with the line: 'That was your life in the flash of an eye, a burst of colour and a slow decline…'. I wanted to try and capture that sentiment in tiny segments of my life as it is with all the bells and whistles and rust and loves and all the humdrum of daily realities that make up our time here”.
The determination to adopt an affirmative philosophy is one that pervades the record.
Taking one word as a 'tag' from each song gives you: US - OPEN - DANCE - SIMPLE - DANCE - BREATHE - BLOOD - SLEEPING - SWIM -HERE - GOLDEN.
If you're looking for a genuine, honest, unpretentious, life affirming album - look no further than Upon Ayr.
