Mr Wright "Hello Is Anyone Out There?"

This is a record whose description alluded me. Being a "music journalist," we rely on those little press releases that labels like to write whenever they have a new record to promote. Some of these little pieces of promotion are excellent; some are terrible, for they either give too little information, or, even worse, delve into a purple prose style of writing, and the band in question gets their name pasted to clauses such as "sounds like..." or "reminiscent of..." or "echoing the genius of.." or "expanding on the gauntlet thrown down by..." or "the bastard child that was born from raping the muses of..." something of similar ilk. The band, more often times than not, has about as much resemblence to said artist as my truck's resemblence to a van. It's the art of taking liberties, and while it makes for interesting writing, it often misrepresents the artist in question.

Case in point: Mr. Wright's Hello Is Anyone Out There? I did not get the press release directly, but I found it online, and it's worthy of scrutiny. I think that it will effectivly illustrate my point. Consider:

Mr. Wright is arguably the last enigma of European Pop. On the one hand an irresistible singer songwriter of the deep reflective craftsman school of Scott Walker or Leonard Cohen and on the other a modern, even futuristic performer with all of the salaciousness and keen observation of a Momus; spiced with a touch of the English village green whimsy of Ray Davies and The Kinks back when they were at the height of their creative powers. The world that Mr. Wright unveils for us is one of personal torments and controversies. "Hello Is Anyone Out There" is full of imagination and it's a downright tease. Mr. Wright plays left handed guitar and delivers vocals in a manner that is both appropriately and impressively understated. The projection is one of easy superiority but it is an intonation of vulnerability and modesty and never arrogance. In a previous incarnation, Mr. Wright was no less the leader of the band Always, who were a central figure in the notorious, now somewhat hip El Records of the 80s, which was an exercise in escapism and illusion. Old habits die hard!

Now, let's examine this promotional release part by part to see if it really represents Hello Is Anyone Out There fairly accuratly.

Mr. Wright is arguably the last enigma of European Pop.

This statement, while certainly interesting, does not completly hold true. While Mr. Wright is certainly enigmatic, there exists no evidence that he is the "last," unless someone, somewhere knows something about the fate of humanity that they're not telling. Highly suspect, but maybe the press agent that wrote this gathered some information from their day job and are casually mentioning the impending fate of humanity. Or, mor plausibly, they know that there are poor saps (aka "hipsters") who will pick this album up simply on the basis of hip references. Either case, it is rather arguable that Mr. Wright is "the last enigma of European Pop."

"On the one hand an irresistible singer songwriter of the deep reflective craftsman school of Scott Walker or Leonard Cohen and on the other a modern, even futuristic performer with all of the salaciousness and keen observation of a Momus; spiced with a touch of the English village green whimsy of Ray Davies and The Kinks back when they were at the height of their creative powers. "

In listening to Hello, Is Anyone Out There?, I hear musical passages that sound like Scott Walker, but I don't hear any singing that is reminiscent of either Walker or Cohen. What I do hear, however, is Malcolm McLaren, with a hint of Howard Devoto. Mr. Wright's songwriting prowess is good, and is, indeed, "modern," but maybe those are just the keyboards clouding my judgement. And as far as the Momus comparisons, there's no comparison there, period. Momus is in a world of his own when it comes to keen observation, though his singing leaves much to be desired. While Mr. Wright is certainly witty, he certainly isn't singing very Momus-like. As far as the Kinks, while I am, admittedly, not a Kinks fan, I think they get mentioned here, to some extent, as a reference point for their a. being English, b. being "eccentric."

The world that Mr. Wright unveils for us is one
of personal torments and controversies. "Hello Is Anyone Out There" is full of imagination and it's a downright tease. Mr. Wright plays left handed guitar and delivers vocals in a manner that is both appropriately and impressively understated.

This is certainly a true statement. Hello, Is Anyone Out There is a record that is rather emotional in places; certainly, the sad refrains of "Missing You Still," or the overwhelmingly melancholy synths of "Darling Honey" can tear a bit at the old heart, ya know. Hello, Is Anyone Out There is also terribly, terribly coy, due in large part to the fact that, at times, you can't really understand what he's singing about. Not that he's being intentionally vague or oblique, but that the music overwhelms the experience, and you're not listening so much to what he's saying as you are listening to how he's saying it.

The projection is one of easy superiority but it is an intonation of vulnerability and modesty and never arrogance.

Very much so! Hello, Is Anyone Out There is a rather humble album. Mr. Wright's very intelligent and is aware of its ability, yet they do not want to overwhelm the listener. A noble idea, but if this is the reason the album opens with "Sailor On The Sea," then Mr. Wright would do well to not open an album with such a weak number. It's lovely, but its production seems rather muffled, and it seems to underwhelm your first impression of Hello Is Anyone Out There, but even though the blandness of that first track is overwhelmed by the greatness of "Darling Honey," it still leaves a bit of an unpleasant aftertaste.

In a previous incarnation, Mr. Wright was no less the leader
of the band Always, who were a central figure in the notorious, now
somewhat hip El Records of the 80s, which was an exercise in escapism
and illusion. Old habits die hard!

Indeed, Mr. Wright's Hello, Is Anyone Out There is very much a record that is interlaced with the idea of illusion and escape. It's a veritible fantasy land of the sad, the melancholy, and the terminally hip, and, eventually, it's a quietly brilliant album. Having never heard Always, I cannot compare the two; but certainly, what would one expect from a band whose title is not only a reference to its leader, but also to its grand aspirations--to be your Mr. Wright. A fine record that, for once, lives up to the purple prose praise.

--Joseph Kyle