Eddie Berman – Signal Fire
This is an L.A.-born/Portland-based artist with a persuasive gritty voice that isn’t a growl like Dylan or Tom Waits but is somewhat balanced between Jon Dee Graham & John Hiatt. Effective tunes especially the swampy Tony Joe White approach on “Go From Here.” Quite good.
Berman (vocal/guitars) says the songs emanate from the point of view of someone teetering on the edge which is basically how we live our lives in the world of today. The set was recorded in L.A. & the songs do have a reliable depth.
Songs are personal, some about parenthood & Eddie’s experiences with the birth of his daughter, some romance & Eddie’s voice always displays a sincere tonality. It’s not as dark & bearing scars as the late Nick Drake or John Martyn. Their lives & careers had their traumatic environment. But Eddie does have nods toward those songwriting creations that hovered over the careers of people like Chip Taylor, Mickey Newbury, John Loudermilk & some of the less intense Townes van Zandt.
The 13-cut Signal Fire (Drops Jan 19-Nettwerk Music Group) has well-crafted songs & are sung with a generally melancholy atmosphere. The song titles are elementary & simple & don’t always depict just how wonderful they are since they are so simplistic. But there are plenty of compelling melodies & Berman does unwrap each tune with a degree of creativity. Berman also has a reflective quality through his melodies.
Maybe if he injected a pinch of humor into his material he’d reach a wider audience. Songs like “Heartbroken,” are sung with a tint of Dave Matthews & done quite well – gives the songs sustenance. A good layer of lyrics runs through the tune & shows Berman’s capability with storytelling.
An expressive & entertaining set of good songs sung with poignancy. Pieces like “Fevered Skin,” & “Heavenly Sign” are superb. They stay with you even after they’ve stopped playing. That’s a good song.
Eddie’s secret ingredient is his interpretive skills with his songs – his voice. “Strange Place,” is a beauty. With some careful career guidance, Berman could be a new John Prine with a generous splash of John Hiatt. That’s something I would love to listen to & it’s already started here. The dude is damn good.
Highlights – “Rolling Over Me,” “Go From Here,” “Mine All Mine,” “Back To You,” “Looking In,” “Heartbroken,” the wonderfully melodic & excellently played “First of Spring (Keira’s Song),” “Anymore,” “Fevered Skin,” (good title), “Heavenly Sign” & “Strange Place.”
Musicians – Chris Wabich (hand-drum tambourine), Gabe Davis (bowed double bass) & Gabe Feenberg’s (lap steel).
CD color image courtesy of Monica Reyes. Final CD art to be determined. CD @ https://eddiebermanmusic.com/albums/ & https://nettwerk.com/eddie-berman-emerges-with-evocative-new-album-signal-fire-shares-latest-single-rolling-over-me/
Enjoy our previous coverage here: REVIEW: Eddie Berman “Broken English”