An Intimately Raw, Yet Sweetly Skeletal Depository
Keeping Secrets Will Destroy You has created some excitement in the world of Bonnie “Prince” Billy. Will Oldham, who has recorded under a multitude of aliases, including Palace Brothers, Palace Music and Palace, has dropped his first solo album in four years. This prolific artist has an extensive career under his belt. There is No-One What Will Take Care of You (1993), an album from his early days, has appeared on greatest albums lists, along with Viva Last Blues (1995) and I See Darkness (1999). A slew of artists indulged in Oldham’s work, Johnny Cash probably being the most prominent among them when he recorded a cover of “I See a Darkness” in 2000. The artist, Angel Olsen, also befriended Oldham in an early part of her career. Both being part of the rock world, Oldham invited Olsen to go on tour as his backing vocalist and she contributed to his Wolfroy Goes to Town (2011).
Running for 46 minutes and 4 seconds, Keeping Secrets Will Destroy You tells tales of wisdom Oldham has gained over the course of his extensive career and fairly recent fatherhood. The opening track, “Like It or Not,” is a perfect example of this tough love and wisdom. He relays the message that whether a person “likes it or not,” life goes on and inevitably life changes. About 3 minutes into the song, Oldham sings “change is a constant and so I am constantly changing,” a line of diction that is tinged with scratchy melancholia and foreshadows the general mood of the rest of the album.
Though the album is tinted with melancholy, it is also flush with nostalgia. Oldham’s combination of these two moods on top of delicate plucking and strumming creates a bittersweet and relaxing harmony, leaving emotional space for the disquieted songs that are “Blood of the Wine” and “Trees of Hell.” The instruments heard throughout the album are violin, guitar, saxophone, cello and a guest instrument. Since the album lacks a drum, the music is a bit more improvisational. The listener is able to experience an unplanned, pure string of gentle sounds from Oldham, adding to the soft intimacy of Keeping Secrets Will Destroy You.
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