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richmfhall

if not now, when?

About Me


Rich Hall
The Pattern
The night droned on into a suggestion of taking the usual patronage at the local bar to a guitar session at Rich's apartment upstairs from the pub. Rich tells me he wants to get my opinion on a few songs he's been working on when we begin to talk about Ghostface Killah's new album review on NPR. He says it was the most intellectually sensitive review he's ever heard done on a rap album. He's like, "I especially liked the street-level aspect that he's brought to the stagnant genre of hip-hop storytelling," in his best Oxford-posh accent-- I am paraphrasing of course.
My guitar playing isn't great. I can play a tune or two when provoked and when Rich asked me to play some stuff I did, but having too many drinks and not practicing is no substitute for keeping good chops. As I play, Rich compliments my stick-to-it-ness. He is being nice. He then plays three of his own songs and I instantly felt out-classed. He isn't very modest.
He's tells me that he's been working on a song that he made when he was thinking about a quote he heard from DMX in an interview. "The guy thinks he's a secret agent from the future sent to the present," he says. I'm not surprised by this fact. DMX might be nut job, but then again so might Rich Hall. I think they truly may have some things to learn from each other and none of it could be good for the fate of humanity. The two of them should not be allowed to discuss it either. It could be devastating to the time-space continuum and prove to be a dark hour for humanity...
While we are on the topic of humanity I would like to say that I'm pretty convinced that Rich isn't a human at all. His species is enigmatic.
Like the pharaoh of Egypt or the Dali Lama, Rich often reminds you of some sort of demagogue exemplar except in modern day culture, i.e. pop music songwriting.
This CD may be a good stab at the ol' pop-punk genre. It may also be an attempt on Rich Hall’s agenda to enslave humanity to his whim and make them pay homage by building grand architectural feats. Most likely it's a combination of both.
Kwame Shorter

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 1/5/2004
Band Website: richmfhall.com
Band Members: richmfhall, others who stop by.
Sounds Like:

Rich Hall
Observations of Humanity

The stories Rich Hall tells on his solo debut Observations of Humanity cast a bleak picture of the world and tell as much about Rich as the subjects he observes. Whether recounting tangled loveless relationships, the sting of rejection or the force of loss, Rich aims his lyrics outwards, only revealing himself in their edges and subtleties. A bold debut, Rich’s Observations are a fearless and clever take on the way we are.

Rich spins his tales over a healthy range of underground rock styles, creating plenty of noise to belie the fact that he’s doing everything himself. (It’s all completely Rich except for some extra guitar and vocals from Ron Bay III on two tracks.) Most of Observations of Humanity was recorded alone and occasionally drunken in the slanty and secluded Chicago coach house he once called home. With just a guitar , a microphone and a computer , Rich manages to create a well rounded selection of underground rock textures to suit a variety of moods.

The ironically titled “Everybody Get Happy” starts things off with a dose of shivering metal guitar chords and a stomping beat. The instrumental cut provides a nice ice breaker before Rich unleashes the tortured guitars and punching drums of “Am I Pretty.” The music’s harsh edges perfectly matching the bitter tone of the song’s acerbic story of being on the receiving end of unreciprocated devotion. As the song reaches it’s conclusion the title question could be coming from either Rich or the subject of the story.

The harsh energy of Pretty is followed up by the all too brief blast of defiant frustration that is “Just Like Everything.” With its spring-loaded beats and loose guitar, Rich recklessly drives Everything toward its stridently abrupt climax. The haunted house keys of “Gasoline” come next as Rich slows things down and gently eases his guitar back into the mix, intertwining it with the overstretched keyboard notes as he laments a troubled friendship.

Putting down the mic again for the instrumental “Plate Technician” Rich brings in Bay and together they unfurl thick swaths of wandering psychedelic guitar. For “Assholes of Misery,” Rich plays contrasting guitar overdubs as he looks over the good and bad debris of a long shattered relationship.

“Kitty” announces itself with a ringing guitar and rumbling baseline, but it’s the mewing synth that melt over the top and the yearning tone in Rich’s voice that give the song so much character. Telling the story of his accidental temporary adoption of his landlord’s cat, Rich finds himself at his lowest point, but somehow able to express a few shreds of hope.

The title track brings a second collaboration with Bay who brings a delicate acoustic melody to the track while Rich explains his desolate observations. Rich and his music both seem stripped bare by the time he gets to the desperate lonesome soul of “Slipping All Away.” With a simple guitar strum and sharp drum cracks behind him, he gently eases through the wreckage of a broken relationship. The album closing and aptly titled “Roll the Credits” finds Rich back in instrumental mode with a driven slice of synth rock.

Noah Levine

feel free to purchase items to show how cool you are.

Before doing my own music, I was in a Math Rock band called "Secretariat" with Mike Wiggs on bass and Shawn Brewer on drums. This is what we sounded like.

Before Secretariat, I was in "Plate Position" with Shawn Brewer on drums and either Pete, Andy, or Scottie Cordell on bass.

Type of Label: None

My Blog

apparently, I'm a dork.

here's a photo I ran across on my friend eric swanson's web page.  ...
Posted by richmfhall on Sat, 28 Jul 2007 02:30:00 PST