Richard Hawley “Coles Corner” (2005)
Hawley had played in a couple of bands Treebound Story and Longpigs.
Following the breakup of the latter band, Hawley split his time between
playing as a touring guitarist for Pulp and as a session musician.
Pulp’s Jarvis Cocker and Steve Mackey heard some of Hawley’s solo demos
and encouraged him to do something with them.
He recorded his first album in bits and bobs, often using leftover
studio time from other recording gigs. The album was well received, and Hawley
was up and running.
This album, like Hawley’s previous release “Lowedges” references a
location in his native Sheffield for the title. Coles Corner apparently
being a spot for courting lovers to meet. That reference seems
appropriate with the collection of gentle, atmospheric tracks, and Hawley holding a bunch of flowers on the cover.
I was turned onto Hawley’s music by a friend in Leeds who played me his
song “Tonight the Streets are Ours” and this album follows a similar
vibe; 1950s balladry styles with the vocals and guitar drenched in
reverb. Strings back selected tracks and this, combined with the
overall sound and Hawley’s deep croon brings Scott Walker’s early
material to mind. There’s more of a country lilt to a couple of songs
including “Just Like the Rain” “(Wading Through) the Waters of My Time”, but much of it is lush chamber-pop and torch songs.
I like this album and Hawley’s sound in general, but I couldn’t claim that every song stuck indelibly in my mind.
The album was nominated for the Mercury Prize but lost out to Arctic Monkeys.
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