Jason Hawk Harris
Love & The Dark
Bloodshot Records
Jason Hawk Harris’s new album Love & the Dark is an absolute masterpiece of talented songwriting and expertly written and produced music to accompany those lyrics. The 9 tracks on the album will keep you guessing at each turn and seem to surprise and grab my attention each time I put it on. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve played it and I’m still finding new things about each song that I like.
Jason’s voice, and the way he delivers of his carefully crafted lyrics, has the strength and range to both pull at your heart strings, or make you laugh depending on the song. He writes about a number of very personal subjects but also has the ability to tell a story and completely enthrall you with the material. And while this is the first chance I’ve had to hear his music, I have put him in the standard rotation with artists I’ve been a fan of for a number of years.
“The Smoke and the Stars” is a beautiful song that subtly builds as it goes, and finalizes with some soaring vocals that really punctuate Jason’s range. “Cussing at the Lights” is tailored for radio play with witty lyrics and a pop feel that would definitely strike a cord with your standard country music radio station. “Confused” has some great wordplay which has Jason replying to the advice of being told to put some money in the bank with the lyrics “Like a bank account could teach me, what grief and God ain’t taught. An IRA just gives me more to lose.”
During a recent phone call with Jason I asked if the past couple years of hardships had an effect on the direction of the album and it’s music. Jason says “I don’t have to live stuff to write bout it, I don’t believe you have to have an insanely hard life to be a song writer. I do believe that you can’t be someone who avoids pain when it comes.” The result of those experiences is an album that exudes both great joys and ground shaking pains.
And Jason embraces that pain in songs like “Phantom Limb” and “Blessed Interruption”, which dive into the death of Jason’s mother. He uses his experiences in an uplifting way in the song “Grandfather” to envision visiting his Grandfather and Mother in a better place where Jason sings about his mother “Shes peaceful and lovely and breathing new air.” He is lyrically masterful and yet not afraid to also throw in some humor when the song needs it.
Settle in with the album and go on the journey with Jason as he tells you a wide range of stories. Each one with it’s own unique flavor and often taking you in a place that you couldn’t have expected.
