At 21 years of age, Liverpudlian
Nathan Carter may look like a member of a fresh-faced boy band, but his old-school brand of Irish country music has more in common with traditional crooners like
Daniel O'Donnell than anything by
the Wanted, as evident on his second album,
Time of My Life. Recorded in County Longford and Nashville, the follow-up to
The Way That You Love Me offers the odd concession to contemporary music, such as the slide guitar-based reworking of
Green Day's "Time of Your Life" and a
Mavericks-esque take on
the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's classic "Fishing in the Dark," but the majority of its 12 tracks are firmly entrenched in the '50s/'60s show band scene of his adopted homeland. Alongside faithful renditions of traditional Irish folk songs such as "Home to Aherlow" and the medley of "Spanish Lady/Higher Ground/Westmeath Bachelor," and country classics like
Tanya Tucker's "Delta Dawn" and
Don Williams' "Lay Down Beside Me,"
Carter's slight American twang tackles vintage pop standards such as
Erma Franklin's "Take a Little Piece of My Heart" and
Peter Sarstedt's "Where Do You Go to My Lovely" in a countrified manner, while the three new John Farry-penned compositions, the honky tonk-inspired "The Rainbow in Glenfarne," the slow accordion-led waltz of "The Dancer," and the Celtic rockabilly of "One for the Road" also sound like authentic Irish dancehall numbers from a bygone era. Fellow Scouser and trad country revivalist
Charlie Landsborough lends a spiritual air to the proceedings with his soothing tones on the emotive duet "My Forever Friend," but
Time of My Life is only ever really concerned with providing a party atmosphere. It may be hopelessly old-fashioned, but its relentlessly upbeat nature and
Carter's charming if heavily affected vocal presence suggest the Irish cabaret scene isn't going anywhere anytime soon. ~ Jon O'Brien