Bands that sound like Lyle Lovett ...
| On Project Opus since: | April 13, 2006 |
| Last seen: | never |
| Biography: | Biography Matt Harlan is a songwriter's songwriter. He composes scenic landscapes and pointed statements disguised as songs. Often non-linear, but always melodic, Harlan's works confront social norms, celebrate lives overlooked, or just wax poetic about coffee and bus stops. Whatever the inspiration, the music is always heartfelt and genuine. Born and raised in Texas, Harlan soaked up the richness of the state and its song-smiths while bouncing between big cities and small towns. Always in love with music, he eventually learned to play and write it. From '60s pop in kindergarten to alt-country in college and all the angst in between, Harlan draws from a range of influences, interpreting a generation steeped in plastic and filtered through the Hill Country limestone. After gigging in rock bands around San Antonio and Austin, Harlan dropped the pick and the power chords to develop his own unique fingerstyle guitar technique. Now back in Houston he is working to promote his earthy, socially conscious sound, which is continually evolving. Accomplishments In 2003 Matt Harlan won the Kerrville Folk Festival's Texas University Songwriters Competition based on the merit of his songs “Suitcase Blues,” “Warm November,” and “The Optimist.” Winning the competition allowed him to play on the Threadgill's Stage at the Festival along with other songwriters from Texas universities. The Houston Fort Bend Songwriter's Association (HFBSA) has nominated Matt Harlan's “Heavy Steel and Spinning Wheels” for their 2006 Song of the Year award. Matt Harlan was recently offered the chance to play at the legendary Anderson Fair for its songwriters showcase series. Details can be found on Matt Harlan's websites and at www.andersonfair.com. |
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| On Project Opus since: | April 18, 2006 |
| Last seen: | never |
| Biography: | Fred Eaglesmith He started writing and playing music, influenced by Elvis and the sounds of roots music drifting into Ontario from far-away radio stations. By age sixteen, Eaglesmith had left home, hopped freight trains out west and made his way back east to the farms of Ontario. His songs are populated with people he has been and has known: tried-but-true blue-collar guys, tired cowboys, young boys in love, bare-knuckled farmers, heartbreakingly good women, beautifully bad women, lonesome good guys, bravura bad guys and Friday-night criminals. Say Eaglesmith, "I think the bottom of the barrel is where the answers are." In Eaglesmith's sure hands, a song about a dreamless small-town snowplow driver is a song about you. Eaglesmith's songs have been covered by a steadily growing list of artists: The Cowboy Junkies, Chris Knight, Dar Williams, Kasey Chambers, among others, and James King. Film director Martin Scorsese has used his songs, as have others including James Caan in his movie "Viva Los Nowhere." Fred has also had feature roles in several film productions. Eaglesmith won The Juno Award for Best Roots and Traditional Album - Solo, a winner of the Canadian Independent Music Award and was a finalist in the 2006 International Songwriting Competition for his song, "Alcohol and Pills." Two tribute albums of Eaglesmith's work have been recorded, and Fred and regularly scores on critics' top ten lists on both sides of the border, in Europe and in Australia, and on Americana charts. Whether you are a "Fredhead," or more of a fan of 50 Cent, if you enjoy music at all (and a good laugh), Fred Eaglesmith is not to be missed. A Fred Eaglesmith show features a mix of passionate, funny and moving music, ridiculously funny comedy, honest tears and poignant observations all at once. Eaglesmith's commentary on affairs -- current ones as well as those of the heart -- is hilarious, uproarious, and provocative, as are his plainspoken zen observations. As one reviewer said, "It takes a jaded soul to leave a Fred Eaglesmith show unaffected." |
| Albums: | FRED J EAGLESMITH,Indiana Road,The Boy That Just Went Wrong,Balin,Official Bootleg Series Vol. 1,Ralph's Last Show (Live In Santa Cruz),There Ain't No Easy Road,Falling Stars and Broken Hearts,Things is Changin',Dusty,Official Bootleg Series Vol. 2 |
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