Album review: Luke Dick “Abraco”

A version of this review appears in Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.

Folk/rock

Luke Dick “Abraco” (BMG Publishing/Luke Dick)

Listeners who embrace “Abraco,” the latest independent release from Oklahoma native Luke Dick, will find themselves enveloped in sheer mellifluous joy.

The singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist, who hails from the tiny farming community of Cogar but now lives in New York City, takes the name of his new album from the Portuguese word meaning “to embrace,” and the 11-song collection is so spry and buoyant it’s easy to oblige him.

Along with producing and helping mix “Abraco,” Dick, 34, played most of the album’s instruments and recorded them in his bedroom. He manages to make the album sound smooth and professional while still maintaining a certain homey, do-it-yourself appeal.

He opens “Abraco” with the freewheeling party song “You Who,” which spotlights his high, clear vocals and practically dares you not to clap along. The tinkling ballad “Everywhere,” featured in Dick’s heartwarming YouTube short documentary “Bread for Boppa,” will resonate with parents and grandparents as they send their children out into the world. For those coping with tattered promises or broken relationships, “Walking in the Night” offers dulcet encouragement to keep going.