Jose Gonzalez new album"Vestiges & Claws"

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You’d never describe José González’s music as "confrontational," but Vestiges & Claws, his first solo album since 2007, offers an odd kind of ultimatum. After eight years of extreme cultural, political and artistic upheaval, it's likely that you're in a much different place than you were when In Our Nature was released. Meanwhile, the music of José González has not changed at all. Are you in or are you out?

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González self-produces on Vestiges & Claws and there’s an unvarnished, prickly edge to the recording. Even when others are in the room, the album feels solitary—the cello and flute on "The Forest" might as well be weaving in and out of González’s head. His best songs don’t unfold, exactly; instead, the cyclical guitar and vocal patterns sound like they’re adding invisible but perceptible layers. Though his vocals are as soft and supple as a down comforter, there’s an eerie quality to González’s restraint and levity. He reaches for high notes and hooks, but he never raises his voice—he’s post-anger, post-verse-and-chorus. His fingerpicking lends a percussive, rhythmic drive that can obscure the actual drums. The percussion on "Leaf Off / The Cave" is almost imperceptible under off-kilter, low-register riffs that sound like Trail of Dead arranged for a campfire singalong.

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