The Ocelots – Everything, When Said Slowly Review

Ireland has been home to some tremendous acts of late. The surge of interesting duos and acts, be it Inhaler or Whenyoung, has been delightful. With a folk boom on this side of the channel with Katie Spencer, Henry Parker, and Chris Brain leading a wonderful, laid-back charge of fresh understandings of the beauties of nature and the immediate areas around us, nothing could be better than tuning into The Ocelots. Take the lush pairings of nature and adapt them to the acoustic joys of a folk duo. Everything, When Said Slowly is a breath of fresh air, a reassurance of taking your time and taking in your surroundings being the right course of action. The Ocelots, as the best in folk class are tremendous at, are asking listeners to take a moment to understand themselves. Compartmentalise your inhibition.  

Soft tones are not the only joy heard in Everything, When Said Slowly. These laid-back acoustics are not a given. They are fought hard for. Wordplay plays such a monumental part of The Ocelots’ style and this comes clear on About You. Preceding track The Lighthouse is a tremendous tone-setter, but the upbeat skill, tender tempo and well-travelled story found in its follow-up is nothing short of remarkable. Twin brothers Ashley and Brandon Watson bring such a vibrant layer to the folk traditions, and consistently so. Everything, When Said Slowly, is as its title would suggest. Key life lessons but broken down into acceptable and moving pieces. Folk is not just a feeling but, as The Ocelots understand, a mantra of sorts, a passionate highlight of a need for slowness in the everyday. Take a step back, and that deep breath, that is what folk music of a modern variety has fixated on, and few are doing it better than The Ocelots.  

Escapism is not frowned on by The Ocelots but is explained with a layer of reality lacking elsewhere. Everything, When Said Slowly is a caring album, one where the exploits of life are uncovered and examined in such a wonderfully, necessary mature tone. Australia is the tender dismantling of a desire to emigrate, a tempting choice for caffeine-fuelled writers who are so beyond the realm of tired they thought “Master” was part of the song title on the advance stream, and not an indication of this being the mastered version. We all have our shortcomings. But in the fast-paced cycle of life, Everything, When Said Slowly hits a little harder. We must do better as people, individual or otherwise, to pump the brakes occasionally. If their words do not convince you, charming riffs and the consistent acoustic tones on Joy Outside may.  

Isolation in the crowd becomes clear on The Good of a Bad Year, moments which accept and onboard the horrors of an emotionally challenging year but ask us, gently, to consider the good. The Ocelots are not short-sighted with this request, in fact, it is as important an ask now as it ever was. Not every song is a heavy hitter, with loving tales of palling around with a pet on Front Door Key or giving love every ounce of yourself on follow-up Tunnels. What remains is a break from reality. The Ocelots bring about a folk energy, a rejuvenating spirit on Everything, When Said Slowly, which is desperately needed to deal with modern times. A tremendous piece of work, where the fundamental folk sound is challenged, changed and adapted into a comfortable understanding of where we may be going wrong, and how we can fix our hearts and heads.