There’s really nothing remotely complicated about Sam Lewis. From that regular-guy name to simple songs with simple titles such as Talk To Me and I’m Coming Home, to his easy-going blend of soul, country and blues, the whole package is as warm and comforting as a favourite old cardy on this follow-up to 2012’s (naturally) self-titled debut.
Even when his songs do something other than what they say in the title, you sense he don’t mean nothin’ by it. 3⁄4 Time is a gorgeously laid-back, doo-wop laced celebration of bohemian slackerdom in a perfectly uncluttered 4⁄4 tempo, and while Reinventing The Blues does nothing of the sort, you won’t be complaining at his lilting honky-tonk canter through a trying week in the life. Lewis is strongest when he’s taking it slow, like on Never Again’s lovelorn pedal steelstreaked blues, and while his music may yet suffer from being so un-edgy that it fails to gain popular attention, the rest of us can just blissfully breathe it in.
