Alex Hirsch - Naturally...

Alex Hirsch - Naturally...
1997/2006/2010, Key Wins Productions

 You might say that Alex Hirsch was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but all of the silver in the world can’t make up for talent.  Hirsch has proven his talent over the years, collaborating with folks such as Elliot Randall, Ice-T, Bionik, Too Short and Griffen.  Alex Hirsch is the son of actor Judd Hirsch (Taxi, Dear John, NUMB3RS) and has certainly benefited accordingly, but Alex’s approach to music has always had a DIY slant.  A few years back Hirsch borrowed money from family members and started his own record label, Key Wins Productions, focusing on releasing albums made with real instruments by real people.  Hirsch’s latest album, Naturally…, is steeped in highly original songwriting that blends progressive and classic rock styles with doses of 1960’s psychedelia and jazz. 

Naturally… opens with “Martian Advance”, featuring churning guitars and an exotic progressive rock sound ala The Rheostatics.  Lyrically the song is more of a riff than a complete idea, but the grand crests and theatric turns play like a film score element.  “Naturally” is ethereal rock with a lot of open space in the arrangement all done up in reverb.  It’s a love song full of sadness and memory; Hirsch’s lyrics are intelligent if a bit off the map for your typical love song.  You might be forgiven for thinking this is geek rock with a refined touch, as Hirsch mixes a distinctive breed of intelligentsia with a charismatically finessed low-fi sound.  Hirsch takes on pure jazz form with “Structure”, offering wicked guitar and bass solos and filling in on piano is subtle but tangible fashion.  Rush fans may be reminded of the sort of structure and style displayed on their Gangster of the Boats Trilogy.

“I Speak The Truth” is an odd bit of atypical blues featuring simply Hirsch and his guitar.  Sparsely arranged and intriguing, the song is like eavesdropping on someone’s internal dialogue.  “Nova” is a dreamy ode detailing the moment of falling in love in graphic detail, reveling in the wake of the emotional explosion.  “Christine” revisits a chance meeting at the wrong time, where possibility and romance churn against limited time and circumstance in a mix of hope and frustration.  The chorus on this song is hauntingly familiar.  “One Confession” is an angry emotional jam with minimal lyrics.  Dark and vibrant, the song is full of anger and seeks an answer in no uncertain terms.  “5755” is dreamy 1960’s folk/pop ala Crosby, Stills and Nash written with a 1970’s singer/songwriter pastiche.  Well constructed, this tune is simply a pleasure to listen to. 

“Jail” is a jazzified rock composition with theatrical elements.  There’s a diffuse sense of humor running through this song that’s mildly entertaining as well.  “Girlfriend” is full of reverence; intelligent and off-beat.  Hirsch moons in a stream-of-conscious vamp in a blend of spacey rock, jazz and singer-songwriter styling.  The solo version of “Christine” sounds to be recorded live in the studio and is a bit more affecting than the standard version.  Hirsch manages to capture a live energy in this recording that casts the song in a better light.  “The Day” is a diffuse, open arrangement; a memorialization in song dotted with Branford Marsalis-style saxophone fills and runs.  “Time And Space” plays like two songs.  The first half is a long instrumental jam.  Once the vocals kick in Hirsch creates vocal triads that sound a great deal like early 1980’s Asia.  “Time And Space” has a finding-our-way feel to it that’s communicated in both the lyrics and arrangement, in what may be the most dynamic and original songwriting in a highly original collection of songs.  Natually… closes with “Lennon”, a tribute to the ex-Beatle that’s both musically and emotionally committed.  It’s a well-written and well-executed closer.

Alex Hirsch hits all of the right notes on Naturally…, following his muse wherever it leads.  Influences run through the album in veins, playing off of Hirsch’s natural musical proclivities and creating dynamic musical moments, helped along by highly intelligent lyrics and an intense creativity that seemingly never rests.  Naturally… is an exciting listen; you never know what’s around the next musical turn, or what else Hirsch might have up his sleeve.  Naturally… is an album that will keep you coming back.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Alex Hirsch at www.alexhirsch.com or www.myspace.com/alexhirschmusic.  Naturally... is available from Amazon.com as a CD or Download.  The album is also available digitally from iTunes.

Reflect - For Those Who Wait...

Reflect - For Those Who Wait...

2010, Reflect

Toronto hip-hop/rapper Reflect is on the rise.  His 2008 debut album, Hope Wuz Here found Reflect gaining airplay on both sides of the Atlantic as well as in Australia, and sparked featured performances in Toronto and New York City.  Reflect is a different style of rapper than what you hear on the radio, foregoing the glam and glitz for a much more measured approach.  The chutzpah and self-serving lyrical approach are still here; just dialed down to more subtle levels.  This is apparent on Reflect’s latest album, For Those Who Wait….  Reflect’s influences include 2PAC, Talib Kweli, Common and Rakim, and elements of each can be heard on the album.

For Those Who Wait… opens with “Intro – For Those Who Wait”, sounding like an admonition of absentee fathers.  Reflect establishes a solid rhythm here, but the meaning may border on opaque for some.   “Another Shot” asks for another opportunity, vacillating between a relationship and chasing his dreams and finding it difficult to fully pursue one without giving short shrift to the other.  Here her works out the dynamics of doing both in rhyme.  “Fly Away (Gotta Get Out)” is a down tempo, nearly melancholy rhyme detailing a hard life caught between poverty and drugs, expressing the eternal ideal of escape.  The song gives voice to the voiceless with a deft lyrical touch without sounding sentimental.  “Gonna Get ‘Em” is a song about reaching out for your dreams the right way; rising up through the ranks with hard work and determination.  Reflect refers to having “A couple of dollars and a dream”, and talks about working harder at making music than he’s worked at anything in his life.  The song may be seen by some as self-serving, but it reflects a work ethic that’s a necessary component of success.

“Million Bucks” delves into the ups and downs of having big money, starting from a desire to have it to the perspective of one who had it and lost it all.  Reflect has a tendency at times to tell a story from multiple perspectives in the same song, like in “Million Bucks”; this tendency arises again in “Lost And Found”.  “Lost And Found” parallels the giddy love of finding the right woman with the utter despair of losing her.  “What Do I Do” is perhaps the most difficult listen on “For Those Who Wait…” Reflect discusses the evil that some men (pimps, abusers) commit against women in a well thought out diatribe.  Unfortunately his vocals on the chorus are almost painfully atonal.  Reflect heads for cliché on “Superman”, singing to his own Lois Lane in a self-serving love song that finds Reflect putting himself on a pedestal rather than the one he’s singing to.

“Worked Over By A Lady” finds Reflect lamenting a friend whose heart was broken, laying it entirely at the feet of the woman who walked away.  The song is well-written yet overly one-sided in perspective and might be taken for being mildly misogynistic.  “Lovin’ Me Lately” is a slow jam for the twenty-first century with a solid groove.  Reflect doesn’t leave much to the imagination, eschewing the suggestive innuendo Isaac Hayes for fully descriptive lyrics that might classify as erotica.  For Those Who Wait…  closes with “Moonwalker”, a tribute to Michael Jackson from the perspective of a kid who used to try to copy the moonwalk who is now an artist himself because of the influence.  The lyrics border on trite, and Reflect puts Jackson amidst an interesting pantheon of artists that includes Ray Charles, Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding, Biggie, 2Pac, Aaliyah, Isaac Hayes, James Brown and John Lennon.  Nevertheless it’s a touching tribute fitting of the self-styled King of Pop.

Reflect’s delivery is a bit bland at times, but his lyrical style shows the influence of artists such as Common and Rakim.  Reflect is a cognitive rapper, spinning generally well thought-out lyrics that give voice to emotions, moments and people who might not find their own voice, and does so without relying on destructive or offensive language.  For Those Who Wait… probably doesn’t slot well with popular urban radio, but will appeal to those who remember a time when rappers got by on their wits more so than on reputations or street cred.  For Those Who Wait… is the real deal, and what Reflect may lack in flash he more than makes up for in his rhymes.

 Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Reflect at http://www.reflect-music.com/.  For Those Who Wait is available from Amazon.com as a CD or Download.  Digital copies are also available from iTunes.