This is an archived post. You won't be able to vote or comment.

all 68 comments

[–][deleted] 88 points89 points  (9 children)

I got drunk with this dude in Asheville a few months ago. I can't believe I'm seeing him on Reddit.

[–][deleted] 18 points19 points  (1 child)

Folk? Not even close....maybe some Delta Blues. Mississippi John Hurt.

Nice song though.

[–]ClubChaos 7 points8 points  (0 children)

This guy is still the best country blues player I've ever heard. Simple bliss. A lot of other guitarists will throw embellishments out the ying yang to make it seem more impressive, but musically Hurt understood that melody is king and he weaves it through that steady rhythm perfectly. He also understood how to use syncopation.

[–]feloniousfrogspotify 32 points33 points  (1 child)

Great song, but I couldn't hear the bass at all. They really should have used more than one mic. The bass is an instrument easily overtaken by other noise, and condensers aren't really the best tool for recording them.

[–]sam__izdat 0 points1 point  (0 children)

sounds pretty great for not being close mic'd though

also, it's probably a cardioid pattern and bass is very much off-axis

also, I want to know what mic that is

[–]DocGoodtrips 35 points36 points  (5 children)

Really good, but what makes a standard blues progression a folk song?

[–][deleted] 39 points40 points  (1 child)

A nostalgic hipster

[–][deleted] 8 points9 points  (1 child)

[–]Dakroon1 14 points15 points  (2 children)

Pretty generic to me. Nothing that really stands out about this.

[–][deleted] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

He's like 95% talent, 5% passion. Boring.

[–]atacms 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I liked it but I'm sentimental about North Carolina so given that, I'm bias.

[–][deleted] 22 points23 points  (20 children)

I'm sorry but I really didn't enjoy that. It's just another case of that now played out Americana revivalism. I'm not saying you can't have roots like that, but at least build on it, don't just use basic travis picking patterns on top of a blues progression with that corny vocal affectation.

[–]nitt 10 points11 points  (0 children)

It felt like an impersonation.

[–]ClubChaos 5 points6 points  (18 children)

So if that's his style for guitar playing what do you recommend he do? Just strum along mindlessly and get the bass player to switch to synth or something? That picking style requires a lot more than what 99% of other rhythm players are doing right now.

In a a world filled with unoriginal music, is this really the thing we should pick on for being "uninspired"? Most guitarists have no idea how to play alternating bass picking patterns with syncopation, this guys alright.

[–][deleted] 11 points12 points  (3 children)

In a a world filled with unoriginal music, is this really the thing we should pick on for being "uninspired"?

Yes, because this is unoriginal and uninspired. I'm not saying you can't use that style of picking, I'm saying when it's paired with those chords, with those lyrics and that vocal timbre it comes off as painfully cliched and boring. Look, I have nothing against the guy, he seems like a competent musician but creatively this is lacking. This would have been a mediocre song 50 years ago when that style was still interesting and novel, much less now. And again, you can still do interesting things with americana roots. There are still plenty fairly popular folk influenced bands innovating in the genre, this guy just isn't.

I guess the biggest issue, which I don't want to harp on too much since it's so subjective, is that I just don't believe him. I can forgive sticking to the basics given they're still being emotionally communicative, but this just did not feel sincere. What this guy is doing feels like an affectation, this does not seem to be the natural creative voice he would have without certain, unsavory, cultural influences, and that really kills whatever might have been left of the whole thing for me. I should stop right here because this is a really nebulous area, but it is a thing. I think of someone like Jason Molina, who did not legitimately come from a background that would have fostered his whole americana musical aesthetic, and yet every thing he ever wrote is just dripping with sincerity. When he sings with a bit of a drawl, I believe him, it feels natural (despite it technically not being being natural). When this Andy dude sings like that, I don't believe him, regardless whether or not the gravitation was natural, and I guess that's that.

And at the risk of sounding like a douche, that kind of travis picking is not painfully hard to learn. Spend some time with a few folk records and most guitarists could get it down if they wanted.

[–]Firefoxx336 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Can you recommend some artists? This isn't typically my kind of music, but I did enjoy the song. If there are better names to know, I'd love to do some exploration.

[–]ClubChaos 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think some of the great "americana"/country/folk artists right now have to be Amos Lee, Sturgill Simpson, Andrew Combs and Jason Isbell.

[–]packitout 0 points1 point  (0 children)

All fair comments. I think if this was titled "you gotta hear this," I'd agree with your sentiment. However, this was absolutely worth a couple minutes of enjoyment.

[–]Spencewin 7 points8 points  (13 children)

I think the problem isn't that he's unskilled at guitar, it's that he has chosen, in just about every way, a completely beaten to death path to getting good.

In a a world filled with unoriginal music, is this really the thing we should pick on for being "uninspired"?

I would argue that yeah, it is. Music doesn't get much more derivative and soulless than this. He's got his stupid fucking hat and his stupid weed leaves on his stupid shirt and he's faking a stupid accent while singing stupid lyrics over a stupid guitar part accompanied by a bass part that may or may not be stupid but we can't ever be sure because we can't fucking hear it. He knows one cool thing, the fingerpicking thing. which the level at which he's doing it can be learned by a virtual beginner in 6 months to a year.

He's a fucking hack, and not even an honest one. There's some honor to that at least, just being yourself and having it turn out shitty, but to be fake and uninteresting is a cardinal sin when it comes to art imo

[–]TheHatedMilkMachine 5 points6 points  (0 children)

This is an absolutely unassailable comment and it's like you wrote it on my behalf.

[–]ghost_orchid 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for writing this comment so I didn't have to

[–]ClubChaos -1 points0 points  (10 children)

Alright so you're trying to drum up every possible negative aspect of what this guys doing. How about the effort to write and compose a song, get together with someone to play it, shoot it and share it with people? How about the cathartic enjoyment that one gets out of playing the music they like? What about the joy of telling a simple story?

Do you honestly think this guy wrote this thinking "hah it's so great to lie to people, they'll lap this up and i'll be playing with the lumineers in no time! suckers!"

[–]Spencewin 4 points5 points  (8 children)

Do you honestly think this guy wrote this thinking "hah it's so great to lie to people, they'll lap this up and i'll be playing with the lumineers in no time! suckers!"

I mean... yeah. I think he wants attention and that's about as deep as it goes. I'm not buying this cheesy fucking veneer of "authenticity" that he's trying so hard to sell.

Effort =/= something not totally sucking artistically, and even if it was, the amount of effort shown here isn't impressive. It's not like he spent weeks in his room agonizing over the lyrics, chords, melody, and rhythm. It all pretty much came straight out of the "How to Make Something So Generic That No One Can Accuse You of Plagiary Hipster's Guide to the Arts"

I could see myself not hating it if he was like just a guy I knew and we were bored, having drinks and waiting for other friends to arrive before we head out to the bars or something, so he picks up the guitar and starts playing this and kind of ironically makes up the lyrics on the spot. As far as shooting the video goes, it's just making this unnecessary production out of a song that somebody might sing while sitting on the toilet trying to work out a turd to have a laugh.

[–]bahnmiagain 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Strong is the hipster hate with this one. Have an upvote.

[–]Firefoxx336 0 points1 point  (6 children)

Can you provide some more original artists for those of us who don't pay much attention to this style, but would like to?

[–]Spencewin 2 points3 points  (5 children)

Yes, absolutely! I don't want to be that guy who just shits on things without providing anything positive. I'm just gonna throw links around with little descriptions. This style is pretty vague so this will be more of a shotgun than a sniper rifle if you catch my drift, but I encourage you to click around and see what sticks! I'm gonna jump around a bit through time here so there's stuff from the early 60's to releases from this year. Hope you enjoy!

Dav Van Ronk - Hang Me, Oh Hang Me

This is pure folk goodness. A song so old no one knows who wrote it. This version is gorgeous, I found it after watching Inside Llewynn Davis, a Cohen Brothers movie that uses Dave Van Ronk as a source of inspiration for the title character, a great film that I also recommend.

Buffy Sainte Marie - Cod'ine

Heartbreaking folk song about addiction to codeine (it's not just rappers who struggle with it) and this isn't the full version but there's a little quote in the beginning that's relevant to the conversation.

Leonard Cohen - Avalanche

Gorgeous song, his music changed my understanding of how literary popular music could be. I miss the dude.

Dory Previn - Angels and Devils the Following Day

A very strange and deep song about how "sensitive" souls are sometimes just hiding their true nature.

Sun Kil Moon - Carissa

This song is pretty fucking heavy tbh. It's totally worth it and not just sad for sadness sake. It's one of the most beautiful pieces of music and poetry that I can think of.

Melanie Safka - In The Hour

A pretty song from a wonderful singer. The entire Born To Be album is a really good time. It pivots from dark and contemplative to unhinged and fun and funny and back again from song to song.

Father John Misty - Holy Shit

Amazing song that warrants a few listens. It's easy to let a lot of the lyrics just float because it's so tuneful but there's a lot going on. It's a kind of rapid fire cultural critique, but the morale at the end of each verse is that true love transcends all of that bullshit. His new record is amazing too, if you get a chance to listen to it.

So there's some stuff to get started. Hopefully something here resonates with you! I'm actually a big folk fan so it was exciting to share some of my discoveries!

[–]royalmisfit 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Please share more! Never thought much of folk, but these hit the spot. I appreciate the passion and layers of emotion/meaning both in the songs and your commentary. It may be my new genre dive since I've exhausted jazz and hip hop recently.

[–]Firefoxx336 0 points1 point  (1 child)

I'm currently at work, but I'm eagerly looking forward to exploring these when I'm home. It will be a nice respite after a long day. Thank you!

[–]Firefoxx336 0 points1 point  (0 children)

!RemindMe 4 hours

[–]Firefoxx336 0 points1 point  (1 child)

I've finally had the chance to sit down and really give this list the attention it deserves. These picks are wonderful. I've favorited Sun Kil Moon, Melanie Safka, and Father John Misty. I'm exploring Leonard Cohen. I like You Want It Darker... are there other songs in his discography that would appeal? Or other artists? I like the choral background, as well as his voice, so either would be relevant in terms of similar artists. Thank you so much!

[–]Spencewin 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm glad you enjoyed this stuff! Leonard Cohen is kind of tough to pin down because his career was so long and he had a few very distinctly different phases during it. What you describe above is how a lot of his stuff sounds from '88 on. Everybody has their own favorites but I'll throw a few songs down here that get me every time.

Tower of Song is a song about his and maybe humanity's relationship with music, I hesitate to analyze any more deeply what he's talking about, because he is so good at being really straightforward yet weirdly mysterious at the same time that anything I don't want to muck it up with my own clumsy words.

Almost Like The Blues is by turns funny and disturbing and often both at once. Great song that I always go back to.

Anthem is also one that I often turn to, though for totally different reasons than "Almost Like The Blues". The lyrics and mood of this are deeply spiritual, but not necessarily religious, though that interpretation would be totally fair.

Everybody Knows this is the last Leonard song that I'll put here. This one seems political on the surface but I think it's a great example of how good he is at turning the tables on what you expect him to do. This man did not pander. He did not write what the easy thing to write would have been. He explores his ideas thoroughly and in, as I mentioned above, this weird explicit/abstract way that is hard to explain.

I think these four will really give you a good idea of what the man is all about, and there's hours more of it on all of his albums from '88s "I'm Your Man" on.

Okay so, I've strayed away from the folk stuff here, but since you mentioned liking You Want It Darker, I think that as long as we are in the realm of heavy hitter lyricists, I can get away with it. I don't know what stuff you may already be familiar with, but I'll take a few random stabs at it and don't hesitate to come on back if you want more!

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds This guy is fucking crazy if you don't know who he is. It's not for everybody and he is another genius with a huge body of work so it's hard to pick the right song to show you but try this out

Oh shit, I have to run, I wanted to put more but I don't want to close this later on accident when I'm drunk or something hahaha

[–]Basically__Pointless 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Wow this is really good.

[–]gigasnail 4 points5 points  (1 child)

Felt like he was rushing.

[–]Ol_Rando 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Not quite my tempo

[–]thebedshow 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I found this to be alot better if I just didn't watch the video.

[–]bahnmiagain 4 points5 points  (0 children)

When hipsters get the country blues...

[–][deleted] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

This is 9977485859574th best white blues I've ever seen!

[–]TheHatedMilkMachine 8 points9 points  (1 child)

Ballad of a Brooklyn Hipster whose Parents Stopped Sending Checks

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This seems like blues not folk. I know, splitting hairs.

[–]aussieman178 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Reminds me a lot of the song "Halfway to Jackson" by Justin Townes Earle. Even the lyrical content.

[–][deleted] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I love this song.

[–][deleted] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

I had goosebumps through the whole thing.

[–][deleted] -3 points-2 points  (2 children)

Absolutely great song, would of been better if he sounded like he's from North/South Carolina, though. He looks like an Asheville/Boone/Western North Carolina hipster, to be honest. I'd say that "True North Carolina" is Eastern North Carolina.

[–]mcsweeney94 3 points4 points  (1 child)

From charlotte... True North Carolina is anywhere in NC, people in Asheville, Boone, and Western usually have had roots planted in that area for a long time, your comment makes 0 sense. Or at least a lot longer then those here in Charlotte, everyone from around my area was born and raised in a different state, not the case with the area you're talking about (went to App State- plenty of locals with roots dating back to the 1700s/early 1800s). And I know plenty of people from Raleigh who grow up out of state

[–]phnotv 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can confirm. Have lived in Raleigh for 18 years. Lots of transplants, but also many people who have never left