Throughout his career, Keaton Henson has lived many lives: he’s played the quiet, sad boy that fans could relate to despite his reluctance to perform live and total avoidance of social media thanks to anxiety, he’s dabbled in the world of composition, more classical-sounding offerings and electronic music and also worked as a visual artist. Now, the ninth album Parader sees him follow an entirely different path. It’s a sonic love letter to the heavier music that soundtracked his youth, swapping the slower, melancholic ballads of previous efforts for a more American garage rock sound.
Of course, there are certain elements of classic Keaton Henson music that remain here: he’s as introspective as ever, if not more than before, as he uses nostalgia as the springboard for the majority of the record. Lines between past and present blur at differing moments across the duration. On ‘Insomnia’, he sings about not being able to sleep in his current bedroom as visions of ‘a haunted 7/11’ cross his mind despite not living in the US for over a decade. An air of sarcasm exists on ‘Loose Ends’ as he revisits an argument with a past lover.
However, the greatest subject on Parader is himself. Henson has long been someone who perhaps hasn’t given himself enough credit in regards to the value of his own work. ‘Past It’ is a reflection on his career and the importance of it, not strictly for public enjoyment but instead as an outlet and a way of coping. Other tracks follow a similar pattern, opener ‘Don’t I Just’ is probably the singer at his most familiar as he examines his failures atop a simple instrumental interrupted by a soaring guitar riff and ultimately combining the best of both worlds that Keaton now inhabits as an artist. ‘Operator’ is a standout track, a declaration that he’s done trying to please people when it comes to the direction he wants his career to go in and in turn, the greatest example of the new and improved version of Keaton that exists here.
Every once in a while, it’s good to break free of your comfort zone and do something a little different. Parader allows Keaton Henson to shed any preconceived expectations of himself as an artist and prove that with a little bit of confidence in yourself and your vision, you can do anything you set your mind to.
