Christian Lee Hutson - Paradise Pop. 10

Christian Lee Hutson is a storyteller above all else, and it has never been clearer than on ‘Paradise Pop. 10’. Opening track ‘Tiger’ has an almost unnerving stillness to it. For the most part just vocals and piano, it immediately demands attention. Though that quiet is not a mainstay of the album, it is an arresting tool to immerse one into this world even more. ‘Carousel Horses’ signifies a move towards a more animated side of the singer — earnest harmonies, and guitars that feel simultaneously euphoric and distressed. Those emotions are woven into every riff and drumbeat; his lyrics are often gently delivered and yet able to hit with intense force, best heard in the piano-led, spatial ‘Flamingos’. Lyrically, the record feels like an exercise in catharsis, while sonically it’s like the exhale of relief which follows. Wistful and tenderly so, ‘Paradise Pop. 10’ is completely entrancing.