"We are the lucky ones, your mother's daughters, your father's sons," Patrick Park sings in the early innings of his third studio album, Come What Will, and while those words are married to a minor-key melody that's sweet and dour at the same time, it somehow seems to fit just right. There's an undertow of quiet determination to Come What Will even in its frequent downbeat moments, and Park's songs point to a light at the end of the tunnel that may be faint but doesn't seem to be an oncoming train, either. A good share of the album's tone comes from Park's vocals; he's been blessed with an instrument that's bright but rich, and it carries his lyrics with a strength that belies its flexibility. The ten songs Park wrote for Come What Will further demonstrate he knows well what works for him, and the music strikes a graceful balance between the thoughtful end of indie rock and the introspection of the '70s singer/songwriter community; Park plays many of the instruments himself on Come What Will, and his guitar and banjo work is impressively nimble, while Matt Mayhall's precise drumming and the string accents from cellist April Guthrie and violinist Jennifer Furches add valuable punctuation to the arrangements (and the production and engineering by Dave Trumfio brings a sleek clarity to the material that steers clear of slickness). Park's meditations on the nature of love and fate don't tend to tell stories you've never heard before, but he gives them a twist that's very much his own, and he never sounds less than genuine and heartfelt on these songs. Everyone has fallen in love and had their heart broken; the real trick is bringing an individual perspective to this universal story, and Patrick Park does just that with skill and imagination on Come What Will. ~ Mark Deming
