Lauren Hoffman

by John Schacht
Returning to the dark, swirling atmospherics of her debut, the moody and gorgeous Choreography ups the ante with layers of textured production, sampling a potpourri of styles and handling them all with equal aplomb... The slinky disc-opener, "Broken", should by all rights be a huge radio hit. On top of a sensuous, vaguely sinister beat, keyboard washes, synth bleats and atmospheric guitar lines from Timo Ellis (Cibo Matto), Hoffman's opening couplet -- "You're a little bit damaged/I'm a sucker for that"-- carries the freighted promise of intimate confession, which the rest of the record delivers over and over.... Choreography may concern itself with the hard lessons learned from the dance of love, but it's also about an artist reaching an impressive musical maturity. - All Music Guide, AllMusic.com

by Leo Zacchari
Lauren Hoffman's new album Choreography, her first studio album in 5 years, is without a doubt, her best work to date... filled with spacey keys, eerie strings, dreamy vocals and reads like a Chinese puzzle: intricate, layered, and complex, but all at once an expression of imagination and ingenuity. The album has a very ghostlike feel... like it's the testament of a spirit that needs to resolve something before it can lie at peace for eternity. - Upstage Magazine

by Joe Breen
This album kind of slides into your affections. Its opening track, Broken, is an achingly beautiful slice of romantic regret set against a backdrop of twinkling musical invention, all echoes and floating notes. And it doesn't end there. This is American Lauren Hoffman's third album but the first to reach these ears. And if the references are obvious - a slightly less uptight Laura Veirs, a more upfront Beth Gibbons - the music is no less memorable for that. On her website (www.forlauren.com), Hoffman cites the spirit of Jeff Buckley, and there is certainly mystery and passion aplenty in tracks such as White Sheets, Solipsist and the chamber pop of Love Gone Wrong. Apparently Hoffman lost her way on her first two albums; she has regained it here.
- The Irish Times

Lauren Hoffman

From the Blue House

Free Union

It used to be that I adored folkie singer songwriters. Then they started coming in waves, one more pompous and dull than the next. I was beginning to lose faith. Then came Lauren Hoffman. I had listened to her stuff earlier, but her new record, From the Blue House , is a small treasure. Hoffman weaves witty, insightful lyrics around nice, if a bit too familiar melodies. She has certainly learned from those who have gone before -- bits and pieces of Joni Mitchell, Carole King, and even Melanie find their way into Lauren Hoffman's songs. These are songs that resonate with truth while still being something you could play around your parents.

--Phil Bailey - Ink 19

It is unfortunate that Lauren Hoffman's debut was released in the mid-1990s. Record companies, after witnessing the success of Sarah McLachlan and her Lilith Fair, signed just about every female singer songwriter in the United States. Megiddo obviously got lost in the shuffle. What is disappointing about that fact is that not only is Megiddo a better album than a lot of the other Lilith wave artists, but it's better than a lot of releases in general. From the moody opener "Blood" to the last track, "Ashram Song," Hoffman touches on a wide selection of styles and rhythms. She is adept at time changes, has a strong sense of melody, and her voice has a range that allows her to rise above the balladeering that tainted most of the Lilith releases. Part of the charm of this disc is the fact that there is no one style exploited here. Multiple styles and ideas are used, from folk to rock to torch songs, and she glides from stone to stone without missing a step. A strong debut, Megiddo gives the listener little doubt of Hoffman's songwriting and performing talents.

-- Chris True - All Music Guide, AllMusic.com

by Chris True
If Lauren Hoffman's debut Megiddo was like exploring a dark old manor, From the Blue House is stepping outside onto the porch in the midst of a beautiful spring day. This collection (released after Hoffman parted ways with Virgin) swings, shuffles, and grooves without the heavy atmospherics that were so prevalent on her debut. Tracks like "Bring You Down," "Dust Off Your Dreams," and "Song for a Boy" manage to combine Hoffmann's penchant for melody and groove with her strange dark lyrical slant. It is unfortunate that Hoffman will not get the necessary marketing to make her a household name with this release, but it is obvious that the artistic freedom she now has paid off in spades. A great soundtrack for a big sky. - All Music Guide, AllMusic.com

Lauren Hoffman: From The Blue House (Free Union Records)


This second CD by Lauren Hoffman shows that she is more than a one-hit wonder, and has now expanded her repertoire in some very interesting ways.



From The Blue House features songs about families, friends and lovers sung in Hoffman's soulful voice. Hoffman, like Fiona Apple, seems wise beyond her years and it's both brave and commendable of her to test out country songs and stray from her usual rock roots. It's no wonder that she steals a line from Elliott Smith ("it's 2:45 in the morning"), twisting it into her own haunting story, as she lists Smith as one of her influences.

From The Blue House is more mature and nuanced than Megiddo, her first album, and definitely shows that Hoffman has been working hard in the intervening three years. Some of the standout songs are "Dust Off Your Dreams" and the sad yet uplifting "Song For A Boy." Hoffman's voice croons as she delves into poignant tales that mesmerize the listener. For more information, visit http://www.forlauren.com

Rachel Kramer Bussel - Check This Out! Pop Zine

Lauren Hoffman
Megiddo
Pitch a Tent / Virgin Records

Thank you, Lauren Hoffman, for clearing something up for me. For the last few years, I've listened and listened, trying to understand the hype surrounding the bumper crop of radio-ready alterna-divas. The Poeful wails, the Osbournish growls, the Trynian entendres . . . I just couldn't figure out what they were trying to pull off, or why labels continued to pour millions of dollars down this funnel of sound-alike one-hit wonders. But now I understand what they were searching for. They all wanted to make Lauren Hoffman's Megiddo.
Hoffman was only 19 when she made this record, and already she's wading knee-deep in the inevitable Fiona Apple comparisons. It's true that both possess remarkably mature songwriting skills and richly textured voices. But where Apple flavors her music with the smoky jazz of the urban sprawl, Hoffman draws on the rootsy noises of the American South. These earthy touches are particularly effective on sultry numbers like "Build a Home" and "Cold and Gray," both of which would sound contrived and self-indulgent if it weren't for the down-home feel. Hoffman's roots shine especially bright on "The Cannibal Ed," a rollicking back-porch rumbler.

The production is innovative, yet respectful of the organic nature of the songs. Hoffman turned to one of her hometown Richmond, VA's local music elder statesmen -- David Lowery of Cracker and Camper van Beethoven fame -- to man the boards. It sounds polished for sure, but hardly the lifeless, pre-digested fluff that high-end New York and LA studios spew forth.

Hell, it was almost worth listening to all that crap to get to this.

-- Jon Carson - Outer Sound

by Matt Ashare
"Virginia's Lauren Hoffman ... delivered the best debut album of the year" - Boston Phoenix

by Melanie Fazi
"... whether you were familiar or not with the music, you could not fail to be impressed by the way Lauren seemed to be in control. Those are songs that are completely her own, songs that belong only to that voice of hers, that don't need any outside help to bring them to life. Of course hearing the songs played by a full band must be quite thrilling too, but somehow that would spoil the songs a little, deprive them of their essence. Sobriety is what becomes Lauren's voice best.

"The most impressive numbers were saved for the end, especially a fierce rendition of 'Song For A Boy' that sounded a little harder than the album version, a song performed with due gravity, as the theme required. The set ended with my personal favourite, a song which could not fail to be intense. 'Dust Off Your Dreams', once a perfect single, is now a perfect live song, full of energy and with a perfect timing, one that was greeted enthusiastically by the audience. The encores consisted of a cover of John Lennon's 'Mother', which was followed (in Paris only) by a song that someone had requested before the show, while Lauren was scribbling the setlist, sitting in a small corner of the stage. That was the unexpected 'Sugarpie', that joyous little country song from the second album. The end of the song was partly improvised, resulting in Lauren's failed attempt to make the audience participate - but even that was fun.

"This is when you realize that breaking her contract with Virgin after the release of 'Megiddo' was probably the wisest decision Lauren ever took. Had she decided to stick with it, there would never have been solo shows in tiny clubs and pirate ships. Come to think of it, there would never have been a record like 'From The Blue House' - Lauren confessed that her unhappy experience with the music business made her lose her love of music for a while. It's already a miracle that they let 'Megiddo' out just as it is, without damaging it in any way. But those things belong to the past. The recent tour was enough to demonstrate that Lauren is now in control and that she has a future ahead of her. Now it's up to her to make the best out of her gift." - electric light (France)