- Rock/Pop
- 2009
- Buy the CD
Reviewed by Mike Farley
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This album does not have the instant melodic gratification of Hest’s Someone to Tell and The Break-In, but as you let the paint dry on these new creations, there is an inner beauty that shines through lyrically and musically. "One Two" kicks things off with a dark alternative flavor, Hest’s baritone lending itself to a comparison of the late, great Nick Drake. "I’ll Be There" has a jangly, Jellyfish-meets-Jayhawks feel, and from there it’s mostly slow to mid-tempo tracks that show the stripped-down talent of Hest as a songwriter—the best tracks being the haunting "Broken Voices," the singsong "Cranberry Lake," and the anthemic closer, "Reason to Believe," the latter of which might be among this dude’s best yet.
It’s safe to say that if Ari Hest was an artist in the ‘70s, his breezy style, which mirrors other throwback artists like Josh Rouse or Gabe Dixon, would have likely made him a household name. But sadly, artists like this today are almost considered a niche genre with a narrow fanbase. Fair or not, if you’re a fan of Hest or this type of well-written, melodic pop, you can continue to marvel in his awesomeness whether you subscribed to last year’s project or not.
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