Having achieved that very rare thing of unanimous appraisal and featuring highly in many music magazines best of 2004 lists with his first offering Gospel of Progress, Micah P Hinson immediately set himself apart from the standard pack of singer-songwriters. His sonorous vocals wrapped around exquisite melodic texturing are his calling card, and yet on sight, few could deny the initial disbelief of such a prodigious and world weary talent being displayed by such a youthful persona.

In the last four years Micah P Hinson, has been a busy guy, with two acclaimed albums under his belt, a re-recording of earlier work composed when he was in his late teens and a side project under the moniker The Late Chord, and with the release of his latest album Micah P Hinson and The Red Empire Orchestra in June marking his third official release, life seems to be going well.

Basking in the glory of recently having exchanged nuptials vows back home in Texas, and while on the European leg of his promotional tour which is doubling up as a Honeymoon period, froggy delight managed to catch up with Micah for an interview.

Though, still plagued by back troubles which have overshadowed the last couple of years, which he has to take daily medication for and smarting from a recent robbery in Spain which saw his passports and medication stolen. He still seems filled with life affirming ardour, as he graciously takes time out to be chat about the pending release of his new album.

What were the influences that affected the sound of this new album?

Micah P Hinson : Well, John Congleton, who is best known as front man and main songwriter for The Paper Chases, supplied the production credentials. He is known for his signature dark sound and a rhythm section that is very large and enveloping. Going into the recording studio we had about 25 songs, which were all pretty well formed going in and the aim was to get over the lo-fi quality of my last album (Opera Circuit), by having the strings provide a good bed for the songs. We had some guys from devotcha and polyphonic spree in attendance, who provided their musicianship. A lot of the album was developed from me just playing the guitar parts and singing, and then just kind of building the strings and arrangements on top of that.

Your previous albums have garnered a lot of praise from the music critics; does this effect how you make music…do you become more self conscious in your writing?

Micah P Hinson : If I didn’t have the fear I would be more nervous. I feel blessed to do what I’m doing; to be-able to affect people and make them feel like their not alone in life. There are a lot of unpleasant things in this world and it’s a great feeling to know that I can supply some form of comfort. I receive a lot of confirmation from people saying that I’ve helped them get through hard times and that makes it all seem worth the effort.

Are you surprised by the favourable press reaction to your albums or have you always been confident in your abilities?

Micah P Hinson :Working on “Gospel”, I was very aware how dispensable a lot of things are in the world, there seems to be so many bands forming, so many albums being released weekly. So I had low expectations going in, I’m just glad to be making music. I have magazines at home with reviews in them, I don’t constantly read them, just to know they are there and that I feature in them is quite an amazing feeling.

What’s the best thing anyone’s ever said to you about how your music makes the feel?

Micah P Hinson: People come up to me at concerts and tell me I’ve affected their lives or relationships, which is incredible. I get a lot of confirmation from people telling me how much my music has got them through hard times, such as divorce or the death of a loved one, to me its more about how it effects the individual than the royalties I get from the records, though the royalties are nice. There are many horrendous jobs in this world, so I feel privileged to be doing what I’m doing.

Describe your song writing process….how old were you when you started writing and when were you first satisfied with the result?

Micah P Hinson: I first recorded Baby and the Satellite when I was 18/19 and I was very happy with the result, it seemed like I was making progress in the right direction. I made it for myself and it felt like I had struck gold.

To me it was very much about salvation and forgiveness, about finding my way in this crazy world, to find or give hope in the midst of forsaken times. I wouldn’t say I was religious but I have a sense of spirituality and its provides a sense of morals, someday I will die and I’ll be nothing more than worms and bones, so I think religion and the associated belief support system provides comfort in the grand scheme/view of things, it engenders the ability to sit back and look how everything fits together.

What’s your attitude to live performances?

Micah P Hinson: Love to play the music live, to see the faces of people in the audience and see how the music affects them directly. It’s fine to record at home and send you music out into the world but I like to surprise people, there are no absolute truths in this world. I love to mix up the live performances…I just played at south by south west and the head of my record label came to watch a performance (fulltimehobby), the show turned out pretty raucous and he phoned me a week later saying ‘do you always play your music live in that way, as on the record it has a much more mellow feel to it’.

Desert Island Discs- Pick 3 albums to take to a desert island?

Micah P Hinson:
Greatest hits (green cover) - Patsy Cline
Disintegration - The Cure
Rhymes and Reasons - John Denver

Is there any artist you would like to work with?

Micah P Hinson: I grew up listening to David Bazan (Pedro the lion), Will Johnson (Centro-Matic), Eric Bachmann (Archers of Loaf). Luckily I’ve met and worked with some of them, it’s great when there is not much difference between the person they are and the person you expect them to be based on their musical sensibilities.

What are your favourite songs on the new album? Why?

Micah P Hinson: "We Won’t Have To Be Lonesome and Tell Me It Ain’t so" …written about the wife and about struggles and overcoming them.

Also, "Dyin’ Alone" (last track on the album)…I wasn’t with my wife at the time….so it was kind of prophetic in the sense it was about the wife, it’s a rare thing but for the first time in my life I’ve found true unadulterated love, unconditional love.

Retrouvez Micah P Hinson
en Froggy's Session pour
2 titres acoustiques en cliquant ici !