DECLAN WELSH AND THE DECADENT WEST, 2

2019 was a very good year for the Glaswegian band Declan Welsh and The Decadent West. Their debut album, Cheaply bought, Expensively Sold, was a hit in Scotland and earned the band a Scottish album of the year nomination. New EP's followed as well as  touring. Then COVID happened.

Tucked away in his room for months on end, lead singer and songwriter Declan Welsh wrote and demoed a new set of songs. The songs drew on the band's influences is new ways and the lyrics reflected feelings and ruminations concerning isolation and anxiety that Welsh was experiencing. But the songs also then gave way to moments of humor, hope and love which as Welsh explained in an interview, 'break through to lift the songs and provide light to the shade'. The band then took his demos into the studio and came away with their sophomore album, 2. 

It's been a minute since I could say that every song on an album was a standout, but that is the case with 2. From the opening song, Mercy to closing song, The Comedian, Welsh and the band deliver one of the best albums of the year and satisfy my need for great Scottish Alt rock.