THE SINGING FORREST
TIDAL WAVE
NEW START
What They Say:
"...impassioned and moderately creepy..." -Michael Roberts, WESTWORD
"Joshua Novak...is distinguished by an ability to balance streetwise rock aggression with radio-smart hooks..." -Larry Flick, BILLBOARD MAGAZINE
"His emotionally charged rock songs don't duplicate; they create."
-Valerie Singleton, ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS
"Even better than the visuals was the music. Hypnotic, raw yet energetic rock n' roll. This band was solid, they were cool and they looked like rock stars."
-Jennifer Layton, INDIEMUSIC.COM
"...Singing of betrayal and bitterness with an overflowing beauty, the wave of vocals and guitar weaving and cascading off the stage or speakers..."
-Kim Owens, KAFFEINE BUZZ
"I've seen Novak play a dozen times as he's blossomed into a confident rocker...As Friday's set proved, Novak is again leaving spectators dumbfounded - in the good way." -John Moore, DENVER POST
"The way Novak pours himself into every song broke every heart in the audience." -Taylor Sullivan, WESTWORD
"Joshua Novak’s peculiar charsisma is nearly tangible in its strength."
-Cassie Schoon, WAYWARD PANTIES.COM
"The album is ambitious - as it should be, Denver has been waiting for this album for nearly five years. DEAD LETTERS employs a pointed pen of dense vocal melodies which are dreamy and astringent, filled with the bubble gum pain of a lifelong hangover. In his vocals alone, love and longing are in never-ending conflict with the painted hope of childhood’s gaming hymns. The arrangements reflect a more-mature Novak and band and while the compositions cover a relatively vast ground, they never stray from the sound that Novak and crew have been honing for the last several years. In all, DEAD LETTERS is unmistakably Joshua Novak and to that end, there is no higher compliment." -Johnathan Bitz, DENVER SYNTAX
"Joshua Novak could probably be called a “singer-songwriter†in a technical sense, but so were Jeff Buckley and Nick Drake. While it would be premature to compare Novak to either, like those dead heroes, his songs don’t, for a moment, recall the awkward musical gropings heard in coffee shops or at open mike nights. A lot of people want to be their heroes, but Joshua Novak is just trying to be himself. His rhythm section was so spot on, it allowed him to launch into flights of emotional and musical exuberance. At times, with his gritty intensity, he recalled early PJ Harvey, at others he evoked Jackson Browne, if only Browne wasn't so lame and a lot more spooky. Novak’s voice sounded fantastic. More impressive, though, is the fact that he seems keenly aware that no matter how great your voice happens to be, if the music going along with it isn’t at least as commanding and interesting, the songs fall flat."
-Tom Murphy, WESTWORD
THE BIO:
Joshua 'Super-Nova' Novak was clubbed over the head in 1962 by a mob composed of such notables as David Bowie, Crazy Mick from the Stones, and a group of people who would later be known for founding the non-hippie variety of free love in deepest Manhattan. Joshua was packed in ice for 40 years and became the world's first successful time traveler. Seems Joshua was too much of a threat in both talent and ability to make all the pretty boys and girls swoon. We're lucky to have Joshua's voice fill the air in these times and once you've seen him perform, you'll agree that not only is superstardom in his future, but Bowie and Jagger really didn't have a choice. He still has the same effect on all the pretty boys and girls and maybe even more than the old days.His brand of cool has to come in small doses. As a species, humans have evolved out of a tolerance for that much cool all at once.
In 2004, he completed an exquisite five song EP entitled, THE FIVE DAY ROMANCE,
that is what WESTWORD called," moderately creepy and rock sexy." It's lo-fi DIY sound touches on topics ranging from sex addicts to car accidents, from drowning to criminal lovers.
A self taught musician and alleged bastard royalty, Mr. Novak is one of fifteen winners selected from over six hundred applicants worldwide
in the MODMUSIC RECORDS INDIE BAND SEARCH in NEW YORK
which features Grammy Award winner, Jesse Harris and others. He has shared the stage with the likes of ELF POWER, BRENDAN BENSON, EVAN DANDO, WOVENHAND, AZURE RAY, THE MOUNTAIN GOATS, THE FRUIT BATS (etc..), and played Denver's best venues including The Gothic, The Bluebird, Hi-Dive, Larimer Lounge, The Oriental Theater, The Walnut Room and even at the famous club, The Bitter End, in New York City.
He has received sensational reviews in BILLBOARD MAGAZINE, WESTWORD, THE DENVER POST and THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS as well as notable on-line sources and music mags such as KAFFEINE BUZZ, DENVER SYNTAX & INDIE-MUSIC.COM.
Recently, Joshua was nominated, for the fifth year in a row, in the singer/songwriter category for the WESTWORD MUSIC SHOWCASE which included the best bands in Denver in all genres of music. Music editor Dave Herrera said that Joshua gave, "a compelling performance" (2006). Also, he was one of 60 amazing acts to play THE MONOLITH FESTIVAL at the world famous RED ROCKS Amphitheatre (2008) .
Joshua and his band prove with such ease that, sometimes, a whisper can cut deeper than a scream.
View Joshua Novak's EPK
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