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| HOME | REVIEWS AND RADIO PERFORMANCES | Loconotion.net | ||||||||||||||||||||
Loconotion.net
» Steafán Hanvey: Steafán Hanvey and The
HoneyMoon Junkies
8.5 out of 10
Try this exercise at home: put Honey Moon Junkies into your CD player, press play, sit down down and close your eyes, breathe in, relax, and enjoy. Or perhaps enjoy the album with a drink or a meal. Live your life however you like while listening to Steafán Hanvey. No matter what you choose to do, this CD will most likely enrich the experience. The only problem: Honey Moon Junkies hasn't been released yet. Someone better pick up and distribute Steafán soon before we get restless over here in the USA.
Steafán Hanvey hails from Dublin, Ireland, but he also spent several years of his life in Finland. Listeners will quickly pick up on the undeniably Irish accent that his voice carries. It's a voice that could spew the vilest of crap and still make it sound good. Thankfully, Steafán is also a strong songwriter who writes intelligently and from the heart.
Honey Moon Junkies contains 13 songs which range from the most intimate of acoustic yearnings ("Show Me") to slightly restrained rock ("Desperation"). The album has some songs which could easily take a bite out of AC radio here in the states if given the chance. "Rooms" is the most obvious as it opens the album with Steafán singing, "Give me something to cling to / Something I can call my own / Something to remember you by when I'm gone."
Oftentimes while listening I am reminded of Nick Drake with the stripped down quality of some of the songs and the sensibilties the music holds which hearken back to Drake's time. "Fair Weather Friend" and "Everyone's Happy" are the ones that especially stick out in this regard. "Dublin Sky" is one of the true gems of the album which feels like it came from some timeless place.
The album ends quite strongly with the one two punch of "Winding Down" and "Show Me." "Winding Down" is probably the saddest moment to be found on the album as it marks the end of a relationship. "Show Me" is a perfect follow up, a song about learning from experiences which concludes things on a perfect note.
Honey Moon Junkies is due to release March or April 2005 in Ireland. That still leaves folks here in the states out in the cold, though. You can either try to get a copy imported or talk the album up so that it arrives here soon. Or both. Steafán Hanvey is set to become quite a hit when this album is released. Mark my words, sit back and watch.
