Hanx.net from 2006 - Review by Wim Boluijt

Review

Hanx.net

September 5, 2006

Patrick Crowson - Patrick Crowson (Eigen beheer) ............................................................................
Debuut als Dylan Lees verder

http://www.hanx.net/recensies.htm#crowson

(This was translated from Dutch to English so)

Paul Bodig wrote a Letter from a Friend to character. You can find the letter on the Internet site of Patrick Crowson (www.patrickcrowson.com). The tale of record and man puts my review here in advance in the shade. The rhythm of the senses, the words, the

pictures. It is everything unequalled. With loving distance and finding humor it is exactly as beautiful as this music debut. And that is what I say too, because I think on this debut that Patrick Crowson reached the height, breadth and depth which can be found in the better works of Dylan. Just like on Time Out of Mind the case is, you enter the record on Patrick Crowson somewhere by means of a song and wander around full of amazement. Josh Allen is Crowsons Lanois. Without him it seems that Crowson would be like Dante without Vergilius; Allen is the man who knows the way. Already, the most natural deepest way is not known. Because the songs of Crowson know particular qualities which make them difficult to hang your hat on. Crowson sings with an ostensive flat voice and his acoustic guitar is simple. Allen adds thrifty instrumentation; a piano here, an organ there, some bells and especially lots of electric guitar. Percussion is missing. And then there are the songs. Refrains are scarcely there and when they are we hardly hear them. But then the nuances appear, in Crowsons voice, in Allens production. You hear a driven obscurity which has not been damaged by the dark. Somewhat similar to that of 16 Horsepower for example, but instead of dogmatic, Crowson brings literary observations, brought with the reserve of a good narrator. Also similar to Tom Waits, for example but instead of the too forced stubborn lecture, Patrick brings his own idiom, naturally like that of a young talent. Bodig tells of the influence of Kristofferson (film and music), Cash and Jimmie Rodgers and the distinction between

rhythm and melody in the guitar. In Little Rose an echo of the guitar of Bert Jansch is heard according to Bodig. Perhaps. Perhaps. He also mentions Townes Van Zandt. His presence (what nevertheless on the ultimate master student proportion indicates) is obvious. But already the songs of Van Zandt are a lot more uniform than those of Crowsons. Therefore, this is a real beautiful debut. In fact with regard to form and contents, there is nothing to compare it to. Although this may musically serve they of a slightly other language, but also the weaver of the songs is himself missing as well as he places and names along the way. And now nevertheless we have a concern for these places; a surplus of things we will never hear and we find ourselves left with the job of finding them ourselves. The reward here is to anyone that takes the time to listen.

(Wim Boluijt)