Hamish Anderson – Brighter Days
Some people live for the thrills, for the surprises and for the things that they never saw coming. These people are confident in the fortitude of their cardiovascular system and get bored really easily.
Of course, the folks out looking for novelty at every step tend to be seen as the exciting ones. But there’s something to be said in defence of those who love familiarity, comfort, and the things on which you can depend.
Take soul and blues music, for example. These are not genres where one innovates. No one can own them, and indeed, they’re stories which have been told a million times. These styles of music are an umbrella in the rain or shelter in the storm.
Hamish Anderson delivers “Brighter Days” with the confidence of a man whose mission has been to bring water to the thirsty over miles of rough terrain. Echoing Tom Petty and the classic sounds of Americana, Anderson is looking for a familiar sound and a classic tale. Fortunately, many listeners are always looking for the same thing for themselves.
Joel Nowakowski – Carve out Your Light
Tai Chi masters spend their entire lives perfecting a few simple exercises. Their movements are slow and deliberate. They rarely see any reason to try anything else. There’s never a higher level that must be reached or the pressure to get to a different exercise as quickly as possible.
The great pop-rock masters are much the same. Many of the really good ones only want to know a few tricks. But they work on them every day. Until, at some point, if all’s gone well, they can summon a feeling with just one gesture.
Some of the best guitarists are the ones who can just bend a note and send the listeners into a dream state. Some of the very best songwriters merely write the truth and add melodies on top of their words.
Joel Nowakowski is exercising with the truth on “Carve out Your Light.” Throughout the song, the singer and the band are working with musical motifs that will be familiar to most listeners. But the goal isn’t to quote something that’s famous. The goal is to get to the feeling caught behind the sounds of Americana with as little effort as possible. The goal is to have those guitar bends, and the bright, ringing vocals send you to that place as if on command. The good news is that Nowakowski is getting there.