Singer-songwriter Ari Hest has one of the sexiest lyric baritone voices in pop music and he knows how to use it -- which is to say he doesn't overdo it.
Instead, the singer puts it in service of the songwriter, and Hest's songwriting skills have been steadily maturing. That could make his new album, "The Break-In," his breakout. Hest has always been able to deliver an earnest performance, but producer Mitchell Froom (Paul McCartney, Elvis Costello, Crowded House) has helped the singer ease up into this strong collection of mostly mid-tempo tunes.
But it's hard to get away from that voice -- one that can run from rasp to caress to power notes to falsetto. Worth the price of admission all by itself.
written on Thursday Jun 7, 2007
The Break-In,
the breakout,
cd.
