Belfast Newsletter

By Geoff Harden, 7 Dec 2001

» Steafán Hanvey: Sole

It always comes as a pleasant surprise when a CD arrives with no advance fanfare and turns out to be a cracker. Steafán Hanvey's 5-track Sole is a case in point. The picture is of a young man but the voice has a marvellous smoky, lived-in feel to it, not a million miles from Steve Forbert. And all five tracks sound like the work of someone with a history in music.

Some digging around revealed that Steafán is the son of Bobbie ('The Rambling Man') and Hilda Hanvey, who sang in the Houl Yer Whisht folk group in the 'seventies. He dabbled with the rock scene here before heading for Seattle, where he developed his music and then Finland, where he now lives and hosts a radio show.

The experience shows not only in a mature vocal style but also in his accomplished lyrics; while they stick to familiar themes of love and loneliness, they are neatly crafted. He can also write a catchy tune and these five slices of acoustic rock would sit comfortably alongside the best of The Four Of Us, with whom he toured earlier this year.

The CD starts strongly with Shadow Of A Man and just gets better as it goes along. The fourth track, Desperation, is the slowest and it shows off his singing at its best on a heartfelt lyric. Although Sole is only on limited release, Desperation is due for a full release as a single in January.

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