REVIEWS
"Here
is a collection of some well-written songs. Haring has been
getting some positive recognition in the Columbus music scene,
as well as with a few prominent performers. One listen to this
disc, and anyone can see why. The songwriting is well thought
out, yet seems to flow very smoothly. The album is produced
by Dan Baird (Georgia Satellites), and features some fantastic
musicianship, particularly from violinist Teresa Fyffe. She
lays down some absolutely beautiful solos, as well as supplemental
riffs especially on songs like "Tremont, Illinois Christmas"
and "Apathy." The guitar/violin interplay comes of
great in the country-tinged "Forgive Me." The overall
production is dynamically appealing, nothing overpowering. The
only flaw (if one can call it that) with the performances on
this CD is Haring's vocal qualities. His voice comes across
so well with the acoustic-oriented, folish songs such as "Changing
Stations" and "Habits of the Heart." Emotions
come across so well, the listener can feel how much these songs
are a part of the singer's life. However, this soft-spoken quality
sometimes gets lost in the more rocking productions such as
the title track and "Work in Progress." This last
cut is an absolute gem, comparable to Springsteen's "Born
to Run" or Petty's "American Girl." If Haring's
voice were jsut a little more grittier, this would be a classic.
This CD is a definite "driving" album, especially
with the first few tracks. One can slip this into the car stereo
system and hit the highway. Haring's work is a pleasure to listen
to, and proves himself to be a great up-and-coming songwriter."
Matt
Merta
Great Lakes Twang
"Evan
Dando was one of the first alternative rock pioneers, a purveyor
of grunge pop consistently lauded by critics and listeners alike.
Unfortunately, while some alt-rockers survived the last century
(Pearl Jam being the most obvious example), Dando has all but
disappeared from the mainstream. It was never Evan Dando's plan
to leave music. His departure had more to do with a fickle listening
audience, one that expected him to reinvent music with every
new release. These expectations and eventual decrease in infamy
are explored on one of the best songs to come out of CCM this
year, "A Prayer for Evan Dando," off Fred Haring's
second album on Grandma Katherine, "The Grand Parade."
Haring has outdone himself. Since his first disc, he has improved
as a songwriter, singer, guitarist, and arranger - plus, he
has been helped by a big-name producer (Dan Baird) and some
top-notch musicians (Teresa Fyffe shines the brightest on violin
and viola). The song about Evan Dando is just one example among
many where Haring scores points for catchy phrasing and lyricism.
On "Tremont, Illinois Christmas" we learn about a
couple traveling to Chicago to have a baby. Haring uses a preacher's
trick to re-tell the Christmas story. He sings about how they
were "bound for Chicago, Mary with child and Joesph with
fear" and about "God's gracious gift, right here in
the Midwest." It's an effective technique that localizes
the story, helped further by a creative rhyme scheme that's
both funny and spiritually challenging. Sometimes the phrasing
gets downright theological. On the upbeat rocker "Work
in Progress," Haring admits: "I'm not always sure
just what I'll do next, but Jesus got the eyes to see me out
of context." What's cool about that is how it has some
great, deep meaning hidden within a fast moving radio-rock song.
Musically, the songs stray frequently into country rock territory,
sometimes reminding me of artists like The Eagles and Tom Petty.
There's nothing overly alternative here, and the thumping bass
and drums on at least half of the songs could fit right in on
most AOR station play lists. What makes it one of the better
CCM albums to come out this year is how the whole package (including
great production and mixing) comes together so well. Haring
proves he's an artist to be reckoned with."
John
Brandon
ChristRock
"I
first heard of obscure singer songwriter Fred Haring on a car
journey across America when a friend told me I should look out
for his music. Imagine my surprise when three days later I chanced
upon the man himself and he gave me a copy of his excellent
second album. 'This Grand Parade' is classic American Roots
Rock mixing the pop rock of its title track with the fiddles
and folk of the incredible clever personification song, "Apathy"
whilst elsewhere there's layers of vibe on rockers like "There's
A Song In My Head" and "Last Man Standing". A
way with words and a creative approach to making original music
in a familiar format, Haring moves from being touching on the
string filled "Changing Stations" and the gentle moodiness
of "Prayer For Evan Dando" to the full intensity of
my favourite track, the driving "Work In Progress".
In a world of sanitised, safe Christian music, Haring is surely
one independent artist who deserves to be snapped up and given
wider exposure. (10 squares)"
Mike Rimmer
CrossRhythms
"Some
songwriters fret about sophomore slumps, but local tunester
Fred Haring has little to worry about. His second CD, "This
Grand Parade", is easy on the ears, with talented locals
popping up every so often to contribute their two cents."
The Other Paper
SINGER MOST PROUD OF HIS SONGWRITING
"Someone has to pray for Evan Dando. Fred Haring has stepped
up to the task. On Haring's second album, This Grand Parade (Grandma
Katherine's Music), the Columbus songwriter, singer and guitarist
wrote the song based on a run-in with Dando, the former Lemonheads
singer. Incapacitated three years ago in Ludlow's Bar, Dando was
picking fights from the stage with audience members and was incoherent
when Haring tried to talk to him backstage. Hence, the song A
Prayer for Evan Dando: "Magazines, late-night talk shows
/ pretty girls, drugs and cameos / . . . youth ain't the same
as invincible / Ray ain't dead just uncomfortably numb / So I'll
say a prayer for Evan Dando and all those on the run.'' "That
scene always stuck in my head,'' Haring said. "I was tinkling
around on the piano one night, and I just liked a line I had:
'I'll say a prayer for Evan Dando and all of those on the run.'
I was going for a Needle and the Damage Done vibe. But, if anything,
it's a general anthem for people who struggle with addiction.
"I'm a huge Evan Dando fan. It's not a slam. He had a lot
of clever melodies and words in his head.'' "What's that
song mean?'' would be a stupid question for, say, Rob Zombie,
or Dando in altered states. Lyrics for someone such as Zombie
are colorful afterthoughts that complement perfectly his electro-metal.
Lyrics for Haring, who with the All-Stars plays an uptown folk-rock,
are the reason for his being. "I really am still a mediocre
guitarist and singer. I'm not going to win male vocalist of the
year,'' he said. "The thing I'm most proud of is the songwriting.''
Haring earned degrees in broadcast journalism and religious studies
from Washington and Lee University in 1993. A Mansfield native,
he moved back to central Ohio shortly after to work, not write
songs. Once settled in, he gathered a band, played the local circuit
and recorded Ghosttowns and Kingdoms. The dark album -- whose
music-that-can't-be-pigeonholed classification was more a burden
than an asset -- is less consistent musically than This Grand
Parade. The new album has 11 songs that range from ballads (Changing
Stations) and rock (Last Man Standing) to John Mellencamp-style
woodshedding (Apathy) and a Christmas tune that works all year
(Tremont, Illinois Christmas). Haring gives "full credit''
to ex-Georgia Satellites songwriter, guitarist and singer Dan
Baird for drawing a bead on the album's direction: "When
we recorded Ghosttowns and Kingdoms, if I was listening to the
Pogues the morning I came to the studio, I'd be like, 'That's
a cool kind of Celtic mandolin thing they've got going on.' I'd
want to put that on. Then I'd go to bed listening to Uncle Tupelo.
By the end, it just became really jumbled. Dan tightened it all.''
Joining Haring tonight at Little Brother's will be the Franklin
County All-Stars, the band that played on the record (save bassist
Phil Maneri): Andy Harrison (guitar), Teresa Fyffe-Quickert (violin,
viola) and John Bellas (drums). (John Zuck has filled Phil Maneri's
bass slot.) Haring and the All-Stars, who've toured throughout
the United States, will hit the road soon. A stop next month will
include a Los Angeles nightclub. "We're going to open for
(actor- musician) Harry Dean Stanton,'' Haring said. "I don't
know how many people we'll draw, but I don't care. I'll be sticking
around for that.''
Aaron
Beck
The Columbus Dispatch
GLAD
TO BE HERE
Columbus All-Star Releases a Modern Classic
"If there's one thing Fred Haring would like to come
across as, it's genuine. It is exhibited in his personal mannerisms,
which in turn inform the lyrics he writes. "I'd like people
to be able to pop in the disc, listen to the songs, and in the
end say, `Hey, I understand what that guy's singing about.'"
That sentiment seems appropriate for Haring's new release, This
Grand Parade (Grandma Katherine's Music). The album is full of
this and that emotion, ranging between determined optimism (Work
in Progress) and closely introspective and personal (Habits of
the Heart). This is not to say that the disc in any way bleeds
over into the emotive or effusive. There is plenty of carefully
worded understatement and reservation when appropriate, furthered
by Haring's talent for matching music to mood. The choices of
quiet piano on A Prayer for Evan Dando and fiddle on Apathy fit
the lyrical tone and refuses to overpower or overshadow the message.
Haring, humble and honest, defers much credit to two related but
completely different parties. One is his band, the Franklin County
All-Stars. The band--Phil Maneri's bass, Teresa Fyffe's violin
and viola, John Bellas on drums and Andy Harrison contributing
guitar--backs Haring live and in the studio with precision and
expertise. The second party, to whom Haring delivers much praise,
is Dan Baird, guitarist and record producer. Haring credits Baird
with narrowing the scope of his music and helping solidify the
sound. Haring explains how his first album was more an eclectic
mix of different sounds, with little in the way of direction.
"If I was listening to the Pogues some morning before recording,
I would go into the studio and say, `Could we add a little banjo
here?'" That conspicuous diversity is absent from This Grand
Parade. Present is a mindful, deliberate direction and consistency
that guides each of the 11 songs. There were many more in the
beginning, though, explains Haring. "I went into the studio
with 30 songs, and Baird cut 15 of them right off the bat,"
he said. This was the beginning of what Haring calls Baird's "slash
and burn method." Haring subsequently wrote another slew
of tunes while on a trip to Europe, and delivered the second batch
to Baird. The tension carried through the recording process, which
itself lasted roughly three weeks, but Haring is not bitter. He
said, "If you want to kill your producer halfway through
recording, he's doing a good job." Haring considers his album
more a "classic" recording. "When we sat down to
record, Baird said, `OK--we can do one of two things: reinvent
the wheel, or make a classic.'" With no hint of arrogance,
he lists albums he wished to emulate: Neil Young's Harvest, the
Rolling Stones' Exile on Main Street. The link between Haring
and these classics is their relative simplicity. "You're
not going to hear anything really different, like, `Wow, I've
never heard that before,'" he explained. He finds that familiarity
on This Grand Parade, with no loss of quality. The album has a
very big, professional sound to it, which Haring attributes to
the mastering job by Greg Calbi, who has worked on albums by U2
and R.E.M. The fancy "buff job," as Haring calls it,
was a perk financed by his recording label and employer, Horizons,
a locally based multimedia company. Some fans of Haring may recall
how the release party was originally slated for earlier this year.
The album release was postponed because, as Haring puts it, "We
weren't happy with the sound." The album was mastered by
Calbi, and now ready for official release. Haring will perform
at a CD release party on Saturday, May 6, at Little Brother's.
Haring's ultimate desire is, as he puts it, "that people
will hear it, and it'll strike a chord." It's difficult to
deny this honesty, considering the singer/songwriter's own open
convictions: "I'm glad to be here, glad to be alive, part
of this grand parade. I know there's no guarantees, I'm just glad
to be here one more day."
Adam
Garratt
Columbus Alive |
