My Boy

Informed equally by his diverse collaborations with the likes of Lorde and Yo-Yo Ma and his increasing work as a screen actor—with roles in *A Star Is Born* and *True History of the Kelly Gang*—Marlon Williams borders on chameleonic on his third solo album. The Aotearoa singer-songwriter slips comfortably between genres and personas here, including clear sweet spots for breezy, beachy folk (“Easy Does It,” “Morning Crystals”) and swooning synth-pop (“River Rival,” “Thinking of Nina”). Then there’s the layered funk of “My Heart the Wormhole” and the theatrical crooning of the closing piano ballad “Promises,” a bold reinterpretation of a Barbra Streisand classic written by Barry and Robin Gibb. All of those scene stages show new sides to Williams, offsetting the lonesome country and folk brooding of his previous work. The opening title track even employs a traditional Māori strum style to honor his Ngāi Tahu and Ngāi Tai heritage, all while riding a frisky disco beat and a dreamy falsetto turn from this versatile multi-hyphenate.

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.

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Once Sharon Van Etten did it, and Angel Olson did it, and even The Cactus Blossoms did it, maybe all rootsy artists were destined to cast aside their sound to make a synthesizer record.

Marlon Williams is a shapeshifter, a songwriter who seems to view life from a multitude of angles. His 2018 album ‘Make Way For Love’ introduced a louche,

The usually lovelorn New Zealander is sunny side up on an album that embraces his inner synth-pop heart-throb