“Appreciators of the dulcet-voiced Marlon Williams will know him as a country folk singer from New Zealand whose balladry often skews sombre and bittersweet. No longer. Williams’s third solo album, My Boy, packs in old timey joy as well as old timey sorrow, then adds surprisingly contemporary touches. The title track is replete with beatific “doot-doot-doos”, a sweet love song that’s a far cry from”
“With actorly affect and an Orbinsonesque croon, the New Zealand singer-songwriter uses the bright, artificial gloss of 1980s pop to evoke an uncanny, self-protective brand of masculinity.”
