You can get off to a fast start. You can sustain your opener with the main course, not filler. But can you end on a high note? Sometimes I wonder if recording a strong closer is the most difficult thing to pull off when it comes to album rock. When it comes to the cream of the crop in music, I can think of more strong openers than strong closers. Nonetheless, I still have my favorites which I’ll be featuring on Mental Jukebox all month.
In the hectic pace of daily life, the music of Jose Gonzalez has been a source of respite for me. Whether it’s putting on one his albums or going to a show, his music is best appreciated in silence and wonder. A reminder to slow down, process everything that’s around me, and everything that has led up to this moment. Vestiges & Claws is an album full of reflective, coming-of-age songs. The track “Open Book” is placed delicately in the final track position like a punctuation mark.
Across his body of work, the intricate guitar musings of Jose Gonzalez remains one of his strong suits. The finger picking is a marvel to behold – something designed for the listener to get lost in. “Open Book” is simultaneously an open book and a mysterious sign. After listening to it, I wonder for a moment if I’m a bit older and wiser than before. And, in many ways, this is something to expect when listening to just about any other song of his.
“I feel just like an open book, Exposing myself in this neighborhood. Talking to people as if I'd knew them well. Thinking that everyone has come through different kinds of hell.”