littlelostdavid / Little Lost David - EP

Look, I rave about some Brilliant New Music or other all the time. I know it, and you know it, and I know that you know it. We're both fully aware that in a year or two, what I recommend to you now might mean little or nothing to me. That's the way it goes. A magpie eye, an ear for a hook and an insatiable curiosity to hear what comes next.

Call it lust for life, attention deficit disorder, a philanthropic championing of the new or a pathological inability to commit - call it what you will. But this... this is something else entirely. No one has made my jaw drop quite so hard on a first listening - in such an immediate, breath-bated, awestruck way - for a long, long time.

The five tracks on littlelostdavid's EP exhibit a level of passion, drama and poignancy that is superficially common in popular music, yet often never quite believable. Not so in this case. This recalls Tim Buckley - not a comparison I'd ever make lightly - and brings to mind the emotional depth and sheer, heart-stopping power of Lorca.

At the sweeter end of his range, David J Roch is delicate and understated. Chris Isaak could have followed up Wicked Game with Hour Of Need and it would surely have been a hit. Conversely, the bruised and brutal theatrics of Dum Spiro Spero sound like an anglophone version of fádo and echo Scott Walker's seductive, reclusive darkness.

There's so much more, I don't even know where to start. The throbbing, pandemonic crash of organs. Gorgeous female backing vocals and semi-choral accompaniments. The heart-stopping pause in "when you take a razor... to your arm". Arrangements that sound simultaneously familiar and fresh. Alan Smyth's warm, crisp production.

Reservations? Just my usual obsession with authenticity and thus my problem with the occasional American twang in his accent. At other times - notably as the emotion rises - his Sheffield origins become more obvious. That's as it should be. A little less Grand Ole Opry and a little more Grand Old Duke Of York, please.

Oh, and the name: a complete red herring. When I bought this EP from him at last week's gig we stood eye to eye, which makes him Very Tall Indeed. And if he's in any way "lost", it's a kind of lost that involves a considerable strength of purpose. An Englishman who can roll his r's in such an unselfconscious way is a rare Englishman indeed.

This is an astonishing, astounding debut. Do yourself a favour and take a listen, especially to the two tracks I've mentioned above. If you like it, buy it as quickly as possible; it's a limited edition (of 400, according to one website) and I can't imagine it hanging around for long. If you can get along to one of his live shows to buy it there, so much the better.

7" version:

CD version:

Posted by Hg on Tuesday 08 April 2008 at 09:02.
Received 8 comments so far.

Yes. With you all the way on this one.

Comment by rr on Tuesday 08 April 2008 at 09:40.

Aaargh. Throbbing organs. I can't believe I just wrote that.

Comment by Hg on Tuesday 08 April 2008 at 09:42.

Oh, you had me at "anglophone version of fado". Wonder if Selectadisc have got him in stock? Only one way to find out. I'll get me coat...

Comment by mike on Tuesday 08 April 2008 at 12:55.

(Answer: negative.)

Comment by mike on Tuesday 08 April 2008 at 13:38.

Hg, I rarely have time (or make it) to click through to something you recommend, because the time of day when I check my feed reader. I did this time.

Wow.

I'll make a point of doing so more often, I think. Thanks so much for this tip.

Comment by Pica on Tuesday 08 April 2008 at 17:07.

Yes, more or less likewise for me. I have very limited free time and opportunity to stream music from Myspace, but I've made the effort in this case and you're right, he does sound great. Especially (on first listen) "Dum Spiro Spero". So I've just ordered the EP. Oh, and I bought the Lupen Crook album today as well.

Comment by mike on Wednesday 09 April 2008 at 00:50.

rr, mike & Pica - glad you're enjoying him!

Pica & mike - yeah, I always assume that probably less than 10% of people who read a review or recommendation of mine will actually investigate further. I'm exactly the same on other people's sites. It has to be a pretty interesting blog post to induce me to click on a YouTube video, or whatever. Hence the special pleading that prefaced this particular review.

mike - BUSTED! First I thought my constant praise for Lupen Crook must finally have got through to you, but now I see from your comment elsewhere that you've just bought this album to fill a gap in your Kevin Ayres trainspotter's collection! Seriously though, I'll be interested to see how you get on with it. I suspect you'll be more critical than I am, but hopefully still open to its fascinating waywardness.

Comment by Hg on Wednesday 09 April 2008 at 09:27.

Come on, don't sit on the fence.

Tell us whether you really like it or not? ;)

Comment by Paul on Friday 11 April 2008 at 13:38.

http://www.hydragenic.com/cgi-sys/cgiwrap/hydragen/mt/mt-tb.cgi/2013

The previous post was links for 2008-04-06.

The next post is links for 2008-04-09.

All original material on this site is © Hydragenic, 2002-2008. Extracts of other people's work are used for the purpose of criticism, review or news reporting, in line with the "fair dealing" (or "fair use") principle.