Hannah Fairlight – Lone Wolf
This comes with a dose of Patti Smith, early Blondie & a slathering of Robin Lane & the Chartbusters, strung together on a hot wire to electrify Hannah Fairlight (guitars/keys/vocals). She could’ve come off sounding like a parody or wannabe, but she has degrees of angst & confidence. She knows the ropes of this musical genre.
Opening with “Fever” — a rhyme-heavy lyric that helps move the piece along the rails with early R&R personification. Tunes attempt to be combustible with old punk-rock aggressive charges but instead, are savory with suave rhythms in a sleek showcase & well punctuated vocalizing. Though “Naked” is a little too Alanis Morrissette for me.
The music does provide listeners with a succession of sparks. What’s missing is the era itself. These types of songs were more flame broiled & angrier in the 70s. But there are snappy smoked-out rhythms to appreciate. The 13 modern excursions of spare R&R are a determined effort on Lone Wolf (Drops May 24/CEN/The Orchard/46:00) produced by Paul Defiglia (drum programming/B3 organ).
Ms. Fairlight at times, comes distilled in a ‘60s girl group (Shangri-Las/Mary Weiss) commerciality but wisely keeps her expressive voice mixed with 70s punk fluency. It works well on “Jaded” & the melodic piano-driven “How Many Times.” Good turns.
Hannah has musical ingredients for tangy pieces but sings so competently. Songs like “Loser” have a nice grip, a tint of fragility & this has some Leslie Gore (“Judy’s Turn To Cry” “You Don’t Own Me”) topicality. But not enough bluster, anger, or muscular intensity to convince me what she’s singing about.
“Just Feel Better” is appealing & cooler — a commercially tooled melody. It’s absorbing though I can’t help but feel that Hannah has always had the necessary gusto but fights with one hand tied behind her back. Her voice is good for R&R but needs the customary growl to dazzle some words.
While not as poetic & intense as Patti Smith (“People Have the Power”), Hannah does have rough-hewed potential. It needs to come out. It’s there, Mr. Producer.
A Debbie Harry/Mary Weiss (Shangri-Las) process arrives gloriously on “Emotional Men,” (good video) & though the words & tight drums sound inspired by The Velvet Underground & an old Barrett Strong tune “Money” (The Flying Lizards). Good stuff.
It’s a punch spiked with whiskey & the music is like a soaked half peach in the bowl – whoever eats it will need a soft place to land. “Lone Wolf” itself – is the jewel of her set. It has presence, character & a good edgy country melody.
Highlights – “Fever,” “Take Too Much,” “Jaded,” “Loser,” “Just Feel Better,” “If Only You Could See Me Now,” “Emotional Men,” “How Many Times” & “Lone Wolf.”
Musicians – Paul Simmons (drums), Billy Mercer (bass) & Jeremy Asbrock (lead guitar).
Photography courtesy of Hannah. CD @ Amazon + Bandcamp + https://linktr.ee/hannahfairlight