When Matthew E White’s debut album, Big Inner, emerged unheralded in 2012, there was a sense of wonder that someone had emerged, seemingly fully musically formed, without anyone realising. But there was also a pleasing oddness about Big Inner: for all the obvious soul influences, the likes of Big Love and Brazos had a trancelike mood that was less Curtis Mayfield than Spiritualized. Its follow-up is a more straightforward affair, and – though still a delicious record – slightly less eye-opening. Memphis and Philly are the soul moods that dominate, and this time round White has added some singalong-ready choruses, notably on Feeling Good Is Good Enough: once someone starts rolling out the la-la-la-la-la codas, you suspect they’re picturing twilight festival crowds swaying in unison. There are depths, though: the emotional heart of the album, Tranquility, is a beautifully orchestrated meditation on the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman, with a feedback guitar solo that resolves into a loping groove, as if death is the peace that follows turmoil.
