M Ward : Duet For Guitars #2

  Adam Selzer - Dulcimer, Mandolin, Percussion
  Carlos Forster - Vocals
  M. Ward - Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals

Originally released in 1999, M. Ward's debut is a sparse, mostly live affair recorded with pal and engineer Adam Selzer of Norfolk & Western at Type Foundry Studio in Portland, OR. Listeners who are already accustomed to Ward's breathy, conversational vocal delivery and soft-picked, West Coast Americana melodies will find much to love here, while those looking for good entry point should probably start with one of his later albums. Duet for Guitars #2 is peppered with instrumentals in the John Fahey and Bad Timing -era Jim O'Rourke vein, and Ward's lackadaisical picking sounds just as lazily precise here as it does on future recordings. There's a real warmth to the sessions that transcends the often bare-bones production. For the most part, it sound like most takes were done live with two microphones, with the occasional overdub, and that style suits Ward's dreamy tales of molasses-slow teenage summers ( 'Beautiful Car' ) and oddball parables like 'Fishing Boat Sons.' It's also interesting to hear him shedding the inflections of some of his more obvious heroes like Neil Young ( 'Who May Be Lazy' ) and Bob Dylan ( 'It Won't Happen Twice' ). Duet for Guitars #2 sounds like a debut. It's got some filler and it tips to the lo-fi end of the scale more often than not, but it's brimming over with promise and timelessness. ~ James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide