Prolific Ōtautahi producer Goodwill (Will McGillivray) has unveiled his debut full-length album “Kind Hands” today - a project which has found its way to completion in bits and pieces - being constantly added to, tweaked and nudged toward the finish line over the last few years while he worked as a producer for hire.
Following his 2022 EP “Incontrol”, McGillivray set out to create a record which challenged him “to write in a way where a feeling of hope or positivity isn’t far away at any point, even if the song is on the moodier side”. The album covers themes of gratitude, committing to yourself, “prioritising the good stuff” and is woven with stories seemingly unassuming things which, upon reflection, still hold a lot of meaning.
“Kind Hands” came together in small pieces over time, and despite initially intending to hand the reigns over to another producer, the album graduated from ‘perpetual demo mode’ to the point of no return. Aside from a smattering of guest performances and some mixing from Andrew Maury (Victoria Canal, Lewis Del Mar, Shawn Mendes), McGillivray recorded, produced and performed all instruments for the entire album on his own.
Will reflects on the experience: “The recording process is truly a blur to reflect on… progress is often made in big waves, few and far between. There’ll be an hour of pure inspiration where everything I try works and I know exactly what to do, and then 3 weeks where I’m not quite sure what the next move should be. This record is the sound of one person spending unknown amounts of time in one living room studio - running back and forth from a synth to the computer to press record, lying on the couch in moments without inspiration. There’s always some hope in these songs, and I’m proud of that.”
Masterfully blending the laid-back energy of his beach-side studio with the polished production that comes from years of honing his craft, Goodwill’s “Kind Hands” is an album as cohesive as it is varied. It covers huge ground with sparse, intimate moments of folk over a bed of classic Alex G and Andy Shauf-esque Lo-fi Indie, littered with dramatic flourishes evocative of Perfume Genius. All guided and tied together by McGillivray’s unique ability, and his living room studio.
KIND HANDS, is out NOW via Winegum Records, and features all previous singles Kill the Guilt, Obamas, Plans, Goner and title track Kind Hands. Vinyl is available online and in all good record stores across Aotearoa.