This album finds Thomas Hine playing a whole variety of instruments to give his songs the extra touches that sit behind the voice and guitar structures that they were built from. The album was produced by Steven Hine as was the last album Into The Bottomlands. It follows a similar pattern and develops his sound which is pretty much kept in the family with Sadie Hine joining on Conquistadores. Swedish artist I'm A Kingfisher is the only other guest helping out on Ploughman.
Hine songs have a directness that allows them to be interpreted by the listener and in that he brings enough variety to them to never make them sound too samey. Old Troubles has multi-tracked vocals over a simple tin whistle and harmonium led backing that makes it an immediate standout. Bright Shining Mountains is again delivered with the harmonium and harmonised vocals that underscore the sense of place that alludes to something deeper. Overall the music and production work hand in hand to produce what could loosely be described as folk or perhaps folk-pop due to the memorable hooks that are imbedded in the songs.
I don't think Thomas Hine is expecting his music to exactly change the world, rather it is about changing his world by expressing the music that he has inside. He does this well and the album is full of moments that will connect and make you realise that there is more going on than you might initially expect and that Forgive My Future is worth listening to (online, at the very least). He expresses his self doubt and assessment of his place in the two versions of Dance Harder where the overall message is "must try harder". However in this case I think Hine has done just that.