Album: The Hale and The Hearty
Artist: Heyward Howkins
Genre: Indie and so so good.
Label: Heyward Howkins
Released: 26 June
2012
My Review: So here is something really interesting: about
two weeks ago I was listening to James Vincent McMorrow’s Early in the
Morning and Bon Iver’s For Emma, Forever Ago alternately and kept thinking to
myself, “why are more albums not like these beautiful gems?” and then here
comes Heyward Howkins and it was practically insta-music-love.
The Hale and The Hearty is one of those albums that
comes along every once in a while and I think “this had better get the
attention that it deserves” because this album deserves attention.
I love the pictures that are painted on The Hale and The
Hearty. I love the sound of Howkins’
voice, and I especially love the juxtaposition between the drums, strings, and
horns. They aren’t fighting each other
for dominance, they're synergizing with each other in the most perfect way.
I feel like this album is effectively telling you about this
beautiful, hazy, dreamy life. Kind of like
how Bon Iver did on For Emma. Of
course, these two aren’t the exact same, but the parallels are there. I will admit I prefer Howkins’ voice (which
sounds a little bit like Nick Drake) over Bon Iver’s. And I think that
Howkins’ eclectic musical background is another massive contributor to the
sound on this album. Without listening
to a lot of different kinds of music there is no way The Hale and The Hearty
could have come together so beautifully.
For instance: the piano coming out at the beginning of ‘The
Raucous Call of Morning’ melted my heart, and then hearing the build throughout
the song with the addition of the horns, and a lighter voice backing Howkins, quickly made this track my favorite from the album.
I feel like music comes to a person at a specific time for a
reason. And this album is going to be
carrying me all the way through the Fall and Winter season, because some of the
tracks feel like the Indian Summer that has been sweeping the country, and some
of the tracks I know I will be listening to when the snow begins to fall in a
couple of weeks.
If you’re listening to Bon Iver, then you’ll love Heyward Howkins. If you’re looking for something
quiet and Nick Drake-ish, you’ll love Heyward Howkins.
If you’re looking for incredibly awesome music that makes you feel
something, then you’ll love Heyward Howkins.
What can I say? I love this album, I can’t wait to see what
comes next from Heyward Howkins.
My favorite tracks are:
Hale and The Hearty
The Live Oak
Sugar Sand Stitched Up
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