The first time I ever head David Poe was at a gig where he was supporting now defunct Oxford band Unbelievable Truth (incidentally, the lead singer of which was the brother of Thom Yorke of Radiohead). A mild mannered slightly unkempt looking man (who looks more like someone you'd feel the urge to give some change out of your pocket to) but really pleasant and friendly. I purchased this album at the gig at full whack, based on the spectacular performance he and his accompanying musicians had given. Which was both surreal, yet extremely funny at the same time.

NYC based Poe signed to the Sony/Epic label in 1997, recorded this album and paid his dues via a series of tours with the likes of Tori Amos, Beth Orton and The Jayhawks. A point of interest are his regular studio and live bandmates, who consist of Rollins Band drummer Sim Cain and the brilliantly talented upright bass player, John Abbey. But don't expect anything that sounds remotely like Rollins Band, or you'll be very disappointed. You'd feel cheated.

David Poe (1997)

Produced by;

T Bone Burnett (yessss)

The crunch with this whole escapade comes down to this; David Poe is awesome live. But this studio effort is a mixture of extremes, in fact it's almost a blend of polar opposites. The exceptional tracks are outstanding, the not so clever ones are a disappointment. But that's probably down to individual taste, and how much you're prepared to allow the good tracks to compensate for the weak ones. David Poe makes music that caters for those that like down beat indie acoustic rock, sung by a someone with a deadpan husky midwest accent. His songs aren't thick and oily, but airy and quietly contemplative. On stage he's Hong Kong Phooey, in the studio he's still Penry, the mild mannered janitor. (Was he himself not misheard as Henry?)

1. Settlement

You could almost be mistaken for thinking this is David Gray as it opens. A relatively short track which is slightly repetitive, and sounds more like a narrative than an actual song. A strumming acoustic and very quiet drums. It's like a stranger you might meet on a lonely country road, it breezes passed you, tips its hat, gives you a wink and smile before it's on its way and forgotten by the time the next wry stranger happens along.

6/10

2. Blue Glass Fall

This is the wry stranger you remember.

A brilliant acoustic performance, that ebbs and flows, lulls and rises like the tide on a windy day. It's breezy and melodic. Poe sings in his trademark husky dulcet tones, oh so quiet, then rising up like a boiling kettle that reaches its peak, before dying down again and quietly steaming, little droplets of moisture trickling down its side.

A tale of woe and drunken mishaps. Making a fool of yourself after being dumped. You get drunk, knock everything over, you feel like crap, you reminisce..

Listening to all her songs,
getting drunk and leaving messages

8/10

3. Moon

A quiet a slow acoustic number with awkward sounding drums. I say awkward, because the rest of the song is in the living room, but the drums sound like they were all the way upstairs. It opens with real potential, but soon gets caught up in its own experimentation. It's a lovely song, but it's haphazard shape shifting spoils it somewhat.

5/10

4. Reunion

This ambles along like a freight train, again, quiet, but brave. Clever lyrics. Tales of a family reunion, sort of, that's my mother, that's my weird uncle, that's the dog, but really funny..

That's my sister, and her husband the b*stard,
she smiles at his moustache, his latest disaster

Obviously the brother-in-law is disliked. Even his facial hair.

7/10

5. California

This one is ooooh so quiet, almost inaudible vocals in part. Try as I might, I can't seem to make myself feel anything but slightly lost with this song. Like i'm wandering around in a dark tunnel, looking for something, but not entirely sure what. It fails to make any sort of impression. Good effort, but no banana.

5/10

6. Apartment

A slow one. Imagine the opening of The Wannadies' You and Me Song, but watered down and less quirky sounding, that's this song in it's entirety, but with a bluesy feel. A smokey room, a double bass, and a bloke with a mismatched suit sat on a stool whispering away about erm, someone's apartment. It's unobtrusive, but it tries too hard.

6/10

7. Silver Eyelashes

If the last one was slow and quiet, this one is going at a snail's pace with a speak up, I can't hear you feel. Minimal musical accompaniment, and Poe waffling on about eyelashes in ever such a quiet hussssssk. Disjointed with no real flow. You fail to notice it even exists.

and my heart's already stopped beating,
I loved you in the most pathetic way

5/10

8. Star

Oh, oh. Space noise intro, huh? This one is quite good. In fact, it's great, a blend of world music Peter Gabriel with a dash of Sting in a sort of Moon Over Bourbon Street/Invisible Sun feel to it. Echoy in part, shifting from light to dense in constitution.

9/10

9. Bloody

Another good one, sounds a lot like The Eels at the beginning, before it relaxes back into Poe style, in fact, Poe sounds not unlike E at times. Has that lounge blues feel to it, no real definition and musical experimentation. It's not bad, it starts well, but then descends into noise and clutter.

6/10

10. Cop

No real surprise that this one is a quiet moment of contemplative whisper and husk, very Elliot Smith in part. A tale of a bent cop, with deeply acidic lines. I think that's Poe's quirk. Tales of ordinary situations, put under the microscope with the slightly abstract points picked out.

The policeman is your friend.
...the stick comes down on the back of his head

6/10

11. Telephone Song

Starts out in a sort of nursery rhyme style of play, it's slow and doesn't really pick up, Poe waffling on like he's having a telephone conversation (hence the title) Blues and jazz mixed together to form a song of mixed genre. The odd thing about this song is it's ending, it just ends, like someone accidentally switched the recording equipment off. One minute you want to smoke a cigar and pretend you're in a bar in New Orleans in the 50's, the next you're brought abruptly back to reality.

5/10

12. Untitled extra track

A short song, sounding more soul influenced. Repetitive and almost like a someone having a conversation with himself.. it's sole lines..

When are you coming back?
Told you before I'm never coming back

6/10


Hussssk

An interesting debut it was, 2002's follow up The Late Album would see Poe's style develop into something much more extraordinary and, well, better.

The plus points are Poe's voice, it really is remarkable, and his lyrics are interesting and often quite funny. I think my apparent argument with this album is that it failed to live up to my expectations after having seen him live. The studio doesn't quite capture that raw quality, instead leaving it breathless and lacklustre. But I do like David Poe. He's appealing on many levels, he's quaint and a gentlemen, with a rugged, yet likeable exterior, a likeable voice. He's warm, witty and welcoming and he can attend a party of mine anytime.


Cheers.

Overall 3.5 stars

Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Reading or Studying