reviews
Kevin Hearn’s music is like a dream. Not a dream come true necessarily, but something surreal that is somehow tangible; a real experience that is tricky to grasp. The pop artist of the Barenaked Ladies, Hearn’s reputation as a gifted multi-instrumentalist precedes him on The Miracle Mile, his latest solo effort that is an effortless offering to Canada’s great tradition of hoser prog pop.
As much as the Ron Sexsmith co-penned "Rescue Us” plods along, the Great Bob Scott’s drums move the fascinating "Lancaster Bomber” along at a visceral clip. "Map of the Genome” bears some resemblance to Tim Vesely’s recent Rheostatics output, while "In the Country” sounds futuristic in spite of its rhythmic allegiance to Otis Redding’s "I Can’t Turn You Loose.” Sexsmith’s pen turns up again for the ambient folk of "Here for You” and the title track has all the majesty of a song from The Wizard of Oz.
Hearn’s vision remains romantically innocent, which somehow jives well with the advanced musicianship on The Miracle Mile. (Warner)
Vish Kanna - Exclaim Magazine
While the Barenaked Ladies continue on as a Canadian pop entity, the best music these days arguably comes from the members’ activity outside the band. The Brothers Creegan, Steven Page’s Vanity Project and BNL’s keyboardist Kevin Hearn all prove the point.
With Thin Buckle—with whom he’s now made three official albums—Hearn delivers The Miracle Mile. The title refers to the area in Los Angeles where he wrote most of these tunes. They were recorded in Toronto. Miracle Mile collects more of Hearn’s melodic, moving meditations (some are sombre) and musings (some are silly and fun) on life. Perhaps due to his own brush with mortality (Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia to be exact), an experience he chronicles on the 1998 record H Wing,
Hearn has kept up his interest in the body, what it means to inhabit one and be in the world. Here his tune “Map of the Human Genome” turns a visit to a genetic research site into a poetic contemplation of the future of the human race.
Though there may be an underpinning philosophy to the recording, it’s not preachy or heavy-handed. Taking a cue from his gentle voice, on songs such as “Lancaster Bomber” or “High and Low,” the album’s music favours the quiet, wee hours of a day in the life of the mind.
Sean Flinn - The Coast
KEVIN HEARN & THINBUCKLE -
The Miracle Mile
2006 Celery/Warner
Miracle Mile - featuring VAN DYKE PARKS
(string arrangment)
C.G. - bass and backing vocals, all tracks
Produced by JIM SCOTT &
MICHAEL PHILLIP WOJEWODA
Engineered by JEREMY DARBY
Mastered by TED JENSEN at Sterling Sound
photos from the Miracle Mile cd release concert at the Drake Hotel
Aside from his fulltime position playing keyboards with the Barenaked Ladies, Kevin Hearn has amassed an impressive solo career that musically and lyrically departs from the more consonant, tuneful output of the Ladies. Instead, Hearn dives bare naked into more pensive territory that speaks more to a love of Leonard Cohen, Elliott Smith and other morose, down-tempo icons than the positively charged pop his fulltime band excels at. The result has engendered three strong solo outputs, all built around strong composition, thought provoking lyrics and Hearn’s ability to emote more than melody from the keys, resulting in richly textured themes that reveal a haunting, introspective songwriter. Despite three strong releases, Hearn had yet to fully realize his potential as a songwriter, and a fourth album made up primarily of lyrical and melodic sketches was planned during time off from the Barenaked Ladies. Hearn temporarily relocated to LA and from his short, but highly productive time down south emerged the basis for The Miracle Mile, arguably his best effort yet. While the album was recorded in Toronto, most of the songs were written while Hearn was lodging on Wilshire Blvd, once nicknamed The Miracle Mile because it was the specific street that played a role in founding America's banking industry.
Most of these songs were written on an upright piano, comments Hearn through an exchange of emails. “I was down in LA, beginning to write and found some time and space to focus. It was there that my daughter was born, and that was miraculous to me, he continues. “Also, I had been reflecting on my relationship with LA quite a bit. I remember going there for the first time to play with the Look People band (Hearn and fellow band mates began Look People in the mid 90s). I had stars in my eyes, and LA really seemed like the land of dreams. I remember running into Little Richard on the elevator in my hotel, and finding myself at a private party full of wrestlers, Macho Man Randy Savage, the British Bulldogs, good guys and bad guys partying together... ha! I thought to myself, anything is possible here!
Recorded primarily with Thin Buckle, which comprises former Look People Bob Scott (drums), and Chris Gartner (bass) along with Brian MacMillan (guitar), The Miracle Mile is a low-key, frighteningly brooding affair drenched in the deceit and sorrow that lines the sidewalks of Wilshire and surrounding areas. In addition, the album contains several highly influential collaborators, including former Beach Boys arranger Van Dyke Parks on the title track, as well as Ron Sexsmith and head Lady, Steven Page. Parks, who contributed the lyrics and horn arrangement to the title track, proved to be an immense influence on Hearn and his recording mantra, ultimately expanding Hearn’s toward what he wanted out of the project and the themes it transcends. “Working with Van Dyke was a real honour and a thrill”l, explains Hearn. “I was nervous at first, but he really liked the song, was totally into it and we had fun. The song was going to be mostly instrumental until the last verse and outro. “I played the verse for him, “we two are good eggs, a little cracked”…. He grinned and said, “Kevin, you have to sing through this whole song. He told me that I should expand on the theme of the miracle mile and Los Angeles in the other verses, so I had my work cut out for me. Also, to have a string arrangement by Van Dyke on there really added the most special finishing touch. The Miracle Mile is laced with Hearn’s deeply rooted humility and lyrical propensity, most noticeably on the gorgeous “In the Countr”y and the Leonard Cohen folk “Lancaster Bomber” Hearn’s fragile vocals are half Page McConnell (Phish) and half John Burns (Calexico), displaying command within frailty, and fearlessness within fear. Furthermore, his musical slew, covering everything from electro-pop to symphonic folk is unearthed throughout The Miracle Mile, showcasing Hearn’s sonic ingenuity and growth, from mixing solo piano on “Statue of Los Angeles” to blending overdubs and synthesizers on “Southbound” A moody masterpiece.
The Miracle Mile is the album Hearn was destined to make, one that speaks volumes about his life and growth as an artist. It is so impressive, that after one quick listen, Warner Canada decided to release it nationally. From battling leukemia in 1998 to touring the world with the Barenaked Ladies, The Miracle Mile exemplifies that Hearn has become a brutally honest, creative and driven songwriter.“Here for You” a song about love in times of sickness, culled from his time undergoing chemotherapy, and riddled with wonderful slide guitar work, is the perfect lyrical example of that.“I think that I used to be unfamiliar with, or even afraid to dig deep when trying to express and articulate what I was feeling. Having cancer really put me in a situation where I had to explore all of my deepest feelings and fears. That was part of what I had to do to get through the ordeal. I had to be absolutely focused” explains Hearn.“I think that when you can do this well, and translate it into the crafting of a song, you can write in a way that can capture and convey a true emotion. And that song then has a chance of reaching and moving others.
Shain Shapiro - View Magazine
Kevin Hearn didn't mean to write an album about cancer. The Barenaked Ladies multi-instrumentalist already did that on H-Wing, the first album he wrote after successfully battling leukemia, and revisiting that time wasn't high on his agenda.But with hospitals and viruses infecting the songs on his latest disc, The Miracle Mile (Celery Music/Warner), it's hard to argue that the album's about anything else."Maybe it is about cancer and I don't even realize it," admits Hearn over the phone from his cottage in the Muskokas. According to Hearn, The Miracle Mile's supposed to be about "disappointment, disillusionment, hope, wonder" and life's challenges. All ideas, I point out, that sound very much related to his fight with cancer."Yeah, I can see that," he says. "[Having cancer] was an intensely life-changing experience, and I think those experiences have a dark underbelly that takes years to figure out. I didn't consciously focus on those things, but they're part of my life."
Hearn's fourth solo effort comes from a place of deep emotion, and it shows in soul-baring lyrics like "If you want to pray for a miracle, it helps to believe in something" and "There's no getting out of this, just seeing it through."Though Hearn allows the writing is therapeutic, he insists that "it's easy for me to write about cancer because I went through it. I can sing a song best when I really feel it." A healthy dose of Flaming Lips-style songwriting helps ensure that a lot of other people are going to feel this record, too. But if you expect Hearn to showcase his catchy, heartfelt tunes across the country, you're out of luck. Too bad he can't quit his day job. "It's frustrating sometimes," confesses Hearn, who's been a permanent fixture in the Barenaked Ladies since 1995. "I don't have time to go out and do long promo tours, and it's difficult to even plan shows. If something comes up with BNL I have to be there."
Though he has toyed with the idea of leaving the band to pursue a solo career, Hearn says being a Barenaked Lady has plenty of perks, like getting Van Dyke Parks, the legendary Beach Boys collaborator, to arrange strings for the The Miracle Mile's title track, or hiring Tom Petty's producer, Jim Scott, to help record the album.
Paradoxically, the biggest benefit of being in a major touring band is the same as the biggest drawback: time. Hearn may not be able to focus on his solo career as much as he'd like, but if he weren't in the Barenaked Ladies he might not have a solo career at all. "I do have the luxury of periods of time off to do these things. And during that time I'm able to afford to make records the way I need to and want to." That meant writing and recording some of his new record in Los Angeles on the Miracle Mile (hence the disc's title), a stretch of Wilshire Boulevard that was developed in the 1920s. It's also where Hearn lived for a year while BNL recorded their new album. "While I was walking the dog one day, I saw a sign that said Miracle Mile. I was trying to find a lyric for the last song and started thinking about where the songs came from. I started singing "Miracle Mile,' and it just fit." Though titling the album The Miracle Mile probably wasn't the best strategy if Hearn didn't want to provoke associations with his illness, he won't make that mistake again. "What I want to do next is a really off-the-wall record," he says. "Something that can definitely not be misconstrued as a cancer record."
NNNNN Brian Borzykowski - Now Magazine
