The Golden Hour is in equal parts cerebral and spiritual. With this otherworldly balancing trick, musician, novelist and world wanderer, Saint Leonard has once again delivered a stunning narrative driven opus.

The album is of the highest calibre, imagining a space where magick, romance and tragedy collide and painting the portraits of the players in this story.

Instead of the indie folk of 2016s 'Good Luck Everybody' we are treated to an artfully crafted genre resistant album developed across Europe with the help of some surprising collaborators. The result is something that carries Berlin era Bowie with it with a splash of Barry Manilow and a healthy dose of electronic licks. No longer indie folk, as with all good art, the consumer is left creating a description of their own. I'm going for savant-garde art rock.

It's a piece of work that insists on being listened to, not consumed. This isn't 50 Shades of Gray this is 120 days of Sodom, this is the real thing.

Featuring tracks written and collaborated with both Brian Eno and The Fat White Family there is a confident swagger to the layers of melody, the deft touch of professionals, genius and the touched is evident throughout. From the darkly atmospheric ‘Always Night’ to the 'My Sharona' stomp of ‘God Give Me Strength’ there is a multitude of humour, poetry, depth and meaning.

Musically it is jazz, indie, electronic, glam rock, making it hard to describe why it's so good. Put it this way, it made me cry, laugh and be late for a doctor's appointment. I'm looking forward to his semi autobiographical novel 'A Muse' which is out at the end of May 2025.

This odyssey into the musical dark arts could very possibly steal your soul.

Risk it.

Words by Rich Dunn