Vibraphonist Mike Dillon's 2020 album Suitcase Man is a highly personal nine-song cycle in which he ruminates on his life and his over-30-year-long career. Recorded in 2020 while in lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Suitcase Man is the second of three solo albums Dillon produced that year, including Shoot the Moon and 1918. Whereas those records showcase his more expansive ensemble work, on Suitcase Man he takes a more minimalist approach, framing his gravelly vocals with spare vibraphone and percussion arrangements. ...
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Vibraphonist Mike Dillon's 2020 album Suitcase Man is a highly personal nine-song cycle in which he ruminates on his life and his over-30-year-long career. Recorded in 2020 while in lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Suitcase Man is the second of three solo albums Dillon produced that year, including Shoot the Moon and 1918. Whereas those records showcase his more expansive ensemble work, on Suitcase Man he takes a more minimalist approach, framing his gravelly vocals with spare vibraphone and percussion arrangements. Also contributing is Givers singer Tif Lamson, who lends gentle harmony and background vocals. There's a textural quality to many of Dillon's songs, with his rough, throaty, and hushed vocals working in bold contrast to the woody, soft-focus tones of his vibraphone. It's a sound that evokes a vivid combination of the classical music of Harry Partch and the punk singer/songwriter sound of Tom Waits. The album opens fittingly with the title track, on which Dillon poetically describes his life as a touring musician like being a "human suitcase," singing, "Now that van is parked outside/I'm gonna learn to live inside/I can unpack myself." And unpack he does, investigating themes of drug addiction ("Empty Bones") and crime ("Show Me Your Hands"), as well as more essential notions of loneliness and regret ("Turkish Rose"). While Dillon's ragged, razor-blade vocals and delicately hypnotic vibraphone may catch some listeners off guard, his candid, visceral songs stick with you. ~ Matt Collar, Rovi
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