Underneath
Though based in North Carolina, David Wilcox shares much with the New England folk mafia ofJohn GorkaandDar Williams. His seventh album pursues the quasi-spiritualist and anticonsumerist homilies of his previous work, without extending his artistic range much beyond some gussied-up rock arrangements and the failed trip-folk of "Sex and Music." Wilcox is at his best with romantic ballads such as "Home Within Your Heart," with its plain-spoken opening, "Too tired to sleep, too angry to pray / Too far down to get back up, too lost to find my way." But the fatal flaw here lies in the tone: Wilcox's social commentary grows preachy and cloyingly earnest, undercutting his melodic sophistication and tasteful acoustic arrangements. Fans of Wilcox will likely love this consistent, true-to-folk effort, but ultimately Wilcox is singing to the choir.--Roy Kasten