Patrick Watson - Adventures In Your Own Backyard

In a recent interview, Patrick Watson said the entire goal of his band’s third album was to give listeners “melodic goosebumps.” Mission accomplished. The orchestral pop that Watson layered together with three bandmates in his Montreal apartment (Get it? They never had to leave the backyard to fuel those creative juices!) is dreamlike in its beauty. Falsetto crooning, whimsical guitar strumming, European horn flourishes and woozy pedal steel float through these songs as if gravity was a thing of the past. The songs have weight, but they never seem to touch the ground, instead swelling into a cacophony of hazy sound. “Morning Sheets” is haunting, the tempo barely quickening as sleepy beginnings transform into a biting bridge. If you already have a hard time getting out of bed, avoid this album. Between the constant goosebumps and dreamy meanderings, that comforter never felt so good.