Ari Hest
A few years ago I saw a coffee shop performance by a guy named Ari Hest. Like many coffee shop performances there was no band, just a lone singer and his guitar, but man could this guy sing. It was a good thing too because he didn't have much of a stage presence (which fortunately isn't a big deal when you listen to the CD). Still, I said I'd be mentioning musicians who have gotten less attention than they deserve, and I'd say Ari Hest definately fits into that category.
I bought his first complete CD, Come Home, there at the concert (I say first complete because he apparently had an EP out prior to his first album called "Incomplete") and it's a great one to have. The thing I like about Come Home is that it's one of those rare CDs that you can actually listen to from beginning to end without wanting to skip over certain tracks. He has a new CD out that I've only heard clips of from his website.
Unlike many similar musicians, Ari keeps most every song energetic with a heavy use of syncopation and unique rythymic ideas. His light but energetic style is alot like what I'd proabbly play if I wanted to strap on my guitar and hit the coffee shop circuit. One thing I'll warn you is that you should steer clear of Ari if you're looking for a great lyricist. Ari has a great voice, is more than an able guitar player, and has a great style but some of his lyrics are poorly written enough to make you cringe ("I don't need no good luck charm, hanging 'round my big ole neck. Nothing in this world could make you're being away correct").
If you can get over that, check him out. If you're looking to download just a song or two, might I suggest "Caught Up in Your Love" or "Aberdeen" from Come Home and "Consistency" sounds pretty good from his new album based on the clip that on his site, www.arihest.com
I bought his first complete CD, Come Home, there at the concert (I say first complete because he apparently had an EP out prior to his first album called "Incomplete") and it's a great one to have. The thing I like about Come Home is that it's one of those rare CDs that you can actually listen to from beginning to end without wanting to skip over certain tracks. He has a new CD out that I've only heard clips of from his website.
Unlike many similar musicians, Ari keeps most every song energetic with a heavy use of syncopation and unique rythymic ideas. His light but energetic style is alot like what I'd proabbly play if I wanted to strap on my guitar and hit the coffee shop circuit. One thing I'll warn you is that you should steer clear of Ari if you're looking for a great lyricist. Ari has a great voice, is more than an able guitar player, and has a great style but some of his lyrics are poorly written enough to make you cringe ("I don't need no good luck charm, hanging 'round my big ole neck. Nothing in this world could make you're being away correct").
If you can get over that, check him out. If you're looking to download just a song or two, might I suggest "Caught Up in Your Love" or "Aberdeen" from Come Home and "Consistency" sounds pretty good from his new album based on the clip that on his site, www.arihest.com
posted by dolphin at 11:19 AM
4 Comments:
I checked him out Dolphin. Your right, this guy is really good. According to his website, he is going to be in Atlanta on Oct 1.
http://www.arihest.com/site.html
Awesome link there.
I've been looking for a copy of him covering Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" like he did in concert. He blew Cohen out of the water. I haven't downloaded it yet so I hope it's a good quality recording.
Some of these people need lyric writers. When I first heard Phish, I was willing to concede that this was the greatest band to come around in a long time--but the lyrics were like something taken off the back of a phone book in a public phone booth. If you find Ari, tell him to contact Karlo. I'll write the man some lyrics.
I agree that Phish's lyricists aren't that good. But still, Trey jams that guitar. What a great band to see live.
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