__ __________ ________________________ _ _ _ _ __________
\\ \\________//--------\\___________________________ _ _ _ _ ____//
..
:: Release Info:
::
:: Artist......> Paul Hogan
:: Title.......> Frances
:: Label.......> Self Released
:: Genre.......> Indie
:: Rip.Date....> 07.27.2005
:: Street.Date.> 00.00.0000
:: Source......> CDDA
:: Quality.....> VBRkbps - Full Stereo
:: Play Time...> 33:24 min
::
__ __________ ________________________ _ _ _ _ __________
\\ \\________//--------\\____________________________ _ _ _ _ ____//
..
:: Track Listing:
::
:: 01. Frances
:: 02. Safe
:: 03. Fingers
:: 04. Moment
:: 05. Decoy
:: 06. Snow
:: 07. Window
:: 08. It
:: 09. Riverside
::
__ __________ ________________________ _ _ _ _ __________
\\ \\________//--------\\____________________________ _ _ _ _ ____//
..
:: Release Notes:
::
:: Hogan's debut CD, Frances, captures the spirit of a
:: songwriter who needed many years of experiment to sculpt this
:: intimate and controlled sound. In a set of mainly solo
:: performances, Paul combines a knack for fresh
:: instrumentation, blending perhaps toy piano or Pakistani
:: banjo, with vocals and lavish laptop synthesis. This set of
:: miniatures, tinged with folk, funk, gamelan, electronic and
:: experimental music, is bound by Paul's simple, yet often
:: ambiguous, lyricism. An album in the classic sense, these
:: songs are charged and personal, like finding a stack of
:: photos from a trip you forgot you took
::
:: -- Mike Barnhart
::
:: Every so often, we come across an album that reminds us of
:: precisely why we make the effort. This is why we review every
:: CD we receive: for the chance to stumble upon inspiration in
:: the form of random CDs...for the chance to stumble upon an
:: album like Frances.
::
:: The record begins with a love song set to tinkly, off-key toy
:: piano. It's an unusual approach -- and one that could have
:: gone terribly, pretentiously wrong -- but Hogan pulls off
:: novelty with ease. His aching everyman vocals are the perfect
:: counterpoint to his experimental methods, transforming
:: musical tomfoolery into a lovely ballad for the album's
:: namesake. From there, Frances seems to take off in eight
:: different directions, one for each of the remaining tracks.
:: There's the acoustic, chantey-styled "Sale", the mystic
:: sparsity of "Fingers" and the accordion spookiness of "It".
:: Remarkably enough, such variety never makes the album feel
:: slipshod. Borne from the ripe musical imagination of one
:: obviously multi-talented musician, Frances is an enchanting
:: creation from start to finish. In other words, Hogan may be a
:: New York City no-name, but he'd be right at home among the
:: best of today's indie quirks.
::
:: ...Which brings us back to the point of this whole Splendid
:: thing, and some well-deserved props to Hogan for reminding us
:: how true the motto: you never know where your next favorite
:: album will come from. After all, isn't that why you're
:: reading this, dear unfailing music enthusiast? Why else than
:: to find out about artists like the undeservedly obscure
:: Hogan?
::
:: -- Melissa Amos, www.splendidezine.com
::
::
:: Http://www.hoganmusic.com/
::
__ __________ ________________________ _ _ _ _ __________
\\ \\________//--------\\____________________________ _ _ _ _ ____//
..
::
:: RiP iN PeACe!
::
::
::
::....................................................................