Darryl Blood

Formerly known under the moniker Tiltmaster, singer/songwriter Darryl Blood has chosen to give his own name a chance for his second solo album. Recorded with a band consisting of Boston-area friends, Blood has put together a fine batch of songs that represent his taste in music. Crafting a style mixing pop, indie rock, folk and country, Blood is really coming into his own as a solid songwriter, in comparison to the work on his inferior yet still enjoyable past effort as Tiltmaster. This Isn’t Goodbye rarely misses its mark, consistently blending sweet harmonies and heartfelt words with all sorts of arrangements that feature banjo, piano, cello and harmonica. He hits strides that bring Wilco and a less dramatic Ryan Adams to mind, whilst able to create moments of pop that could rival Elliott Smith. At eight songs, it seems a bit of a lacklustre effort as a full-length album, but what is here stirs up enough contentment for the time being.