Ned Collette’s latest album Mixed Light, his 8th solo outing, shines that bright light on a cultivated and multifaceted songwriting talent. As all true Nedheads would know to expect, the album flows freely between styles, genre-hopping and rollercoasting through moods. Sometimes delicate and dreamy then warm, dramatic and melancholy, it tumbles into rhythmic, almost psychedelic, melodic pop, before diving into a whirlpool of his most raucous and raw offerings to date. Collette’s songwriting is compositional and often complex but never disordered. Bringing to bear the insight of a storied 20+ year career, encompassing experimental jazz, progressive folk, indie pop and post-rock – all of which echo in the tracks on what is a truly accomplished, beautiful and intricate album.

The scenes in Mixed Light are illuminated by dazzling guest vocals and a cast of transcendent players. Leah Senior’s sure and beautiful voice is interwoven with Ned’s throughout the album, adding depth of character and gravity. At the centre of the record sits ‘In the Kitchen’, a brilliantly concise duet with Bonnie “Prince” Billy, whose instantly recognisable, visceral and unvarnished edge is a counterpoint to Ned’s darker tone.

Collette has built quite a clan around him over recent years, and a lot of regulars appear. The Necks’ Chris Abrahams joins for the third album in a row on piano, old Wirewalker bandmates Joe Talia and Ben Bourke feature more prominently than they have since 2014’s Networking In Purgatory, and the current Berlin trio of Steve Heather and Fredrik Kinbom also appear in some of the albums most exploratory moments. Freely keening saxophone appears courtesy of Melbourne legend Tim Pledger, Anthea Caddy returns on cello, Judith Hamann sings too, and flutes from Belinda Woods and Brazil’s Marina Cyrino combine classically with Collette’s now ubiquitous nylon string. For the first time in a long time he throws down some pretty heavy electric playing as well.

Mixed Light is an exquisite representation of Ned Collete’s prowess as singer-songwriter, featuring some of his most romantic and reflective writing. “I’ve seen the obvious pose, and the way that that goes” he sings on the lead single ‘Curious Thing’, “I’ve seen the world in the slipstream of a dare, and that’s what scares me the most” and from there he offers an alternative and typically defiant route, journeying out from this languid piano scene-setter to places you wouldn’t imagine the scene could go, places perhaps not always apparent in modern music anymore, where conversational outsider folk meets grinding motorik rock and large ensemble free jazz speaks to romantic pop. But it works, it’s a trip worth taking, and it’s the sure testimony of an experienced sonic explorer.

–Kate Reid, It Records