Under the moniker Field Medic, Kevin Patrick Sullivan has built a reputation as a profoundly earnest singer/songwriter whose music is unvarnished and deeply personal. His breakthrough album, Floral Prince (2020), found him singing candidly about his sex life and substance abuse, blending fully refined arrangements and rough, off-the-cuff demo recordings. Yet, boundless & true, his latest LP marks a return to earlier form, with many of the songs finding Sullivan in a stripped-down, intimate setting of voice, guitar or banjo, and sometimes harmonica. The recordings sound rough and primitive, too, but the low fidelity gives his modern folk and country tunes an additional rawness, which translates beautifully on his eighth full-length.
On the opening title track, “boundless & true”, Sullivan lays out his mission statement: “What I seek is happiness boundless and true.” He croons over a fingerpicked guitar, detailing the difficulties in his journey. He battles internal and external obstacles but reassures listeners, singing, “And I will search forever until I’m dead in my tomb.” In his pursuit of happiness, Sullivan often chooses unhealthy coping mechanisms, self-medicating his woes with various vices. The following song, “I hate being sober”, lists many reasons why he drinks: he hates being lucid, hates being older, feels bored while out and about, and would rather live in dreams. Field Medic admits drinking helps him mellow out his obsessive-compulsive disorder.
“I feel inspired by the friendly orthodontist” is exactly how it sounds. Sullivan recounts an amusing story about how unexpected kindness made him reconsider his life choices. When visiting to get his permanent retainer fixed, the orthodontist offers to repair it for free next time. He contemplates fixing his front tooth and giving up music altogether but rescinds it at the end with, “I’m only joking”.
In addition to the entertaining and plainspoken narratives, he adds something memorable on “camel filter cigarettes. Here, he is joined by Kathryn Ryan, who adds a sweet harmony to a catchy number about smoking. He goes into the economics of buying tobacco and the difficulty of quitting the habit. It doesn’t matter that he knows it’s bad for his wallet and bad for his lungs; when he is lonely, cigarettes feel like his only friend.
While touring, Field Music would often perform accompanied by a boombox, which would provide an electronic beat. He hasn’t left this interesting juxtaposition and has incorporated it in many songs throughout the album. While solo performances could feel redundant, especially if there’s little variation, the beats add an unexpected touch. This blend of folk and electronic elements might seem unusual, but given Suillivan’s previous work, it feels like his unique signature. The same goes for the fuzzy and static recording. One could imagine a modern-day song catcher—an Alan Lomax type—recording these singer-songwriters in the DIY circuit. These elements give Field Medic a breath of not only originality but sincerity.
Though boundless & true may appear as an artistic backpedal, it’s not. The songs Sullivan has crafted are some of the most honest and raw omissions in his discography. Contextually, it seems that his “slacker” vibe mixed with folk and country styles is simply copying artists like MJ Lenderman, but Sulivan has been doing this well before Lenderman became a music press darling. Admittedly, Sullivan’s performance feels more authentic.
The album captures Sullivan almost entirely by himself, delivering masterfully fingerpicked and beautifully written songs. At different turns, you could describe him as a depressed prime Bob Dylan; other times, he could be Conor Oberst or Elliott Smith with a drum machine—either characterization is a testament to Sulivan’s songwriting and performance. If these songs are born from his quest for happiness, we can only hope he finds peace while continuing to write poignant, heart-wrenching music.