Danella Hocevar

Danella Hocevar – the story so far

Music has been a lifelong passion for Danella Hocevar, who is currently writing and recording as a solo artist following a lengthy career as frontperson for An April March and other groups. The Toronto-based singer/songwriter/guitarist has pursued her interest in music since the age of four, when she began playing classical guitar. By the time she was fourteen, Hocevar had already formed her first band, Dead Souls. Dead Souls allowed Hocevar to develop her songcraft, and the group’s underground cassette, “Listen”, even managed to make some waves on local college radio. This experience encouraged the young musician, and set the groundwork for her next endeavor, the more ambitious and successful group An April March.
Hocevar formed An April March in 1989, and the highly-regarded dreampop outfit would be her primary musical outlet for over a decade. An April March was a forum for Hocevar’s melodic and emotionally-charged songwriting, written in collaboration with her partner Christopher Perry’s unique textural guitar work and production skills, and rounded out by a number of additional collaborators on bass and drums, most notably drummer Michael Klüg. The sound of An April March was quite unusual on the more traditionally rock-based Canadian music landscape of the early ‘90’s, exploring directions more in tune with the British shoegazer scene or the ethereal sounds emanating from the 4AD and Creation labels, but the group nevertheless found success early. Their blissful, multi-layered single “Scarlet Bliss” won a spot on Toronto alternative radio station CFNY’s 1992 New Music Search CD, and received substantial airplay as a result, establishing a wider audience for An April March. The group soon delivered their debut album, “Impatiens”, on their own label, Cartwheel Recordings. The album, featuring “Scarlet Bliss” and second single “The Last of Ariadne”, was a substantial offering of densely-layered, shimmering guitar soundscapes and dynamic rhythmic structures, underlying Hocevar’s expressive sing-song vocal stylings. NOW described their music as “Atmospheric, well-crafted pop,” while across the country, B.C. paper Kamloops this Week enthused, “The combination of the lush, sweepingly full arrangements and Danella Hocevar’s deep-in-the-mix vocals, envelops, tantalises and catches on like a summer sea breeze.”
An April March continued building on their success and developing their sound throughout the 1990’s, and solidified their reputation as a powerful live act alongside their prolific studio output. The group were again included on CFNY’s New Music Search CD in 1994, with their moody single “Lava”, also a highlight of their second CD, “Instruments of Lust and Fury”. By this time, An April March had inked a record deal with Washington, DC-based indie Bedazzled Records, a boutique dreampop label that boasted a number of likeminded artists such as The Curtain Society, Siddal, and Strange Boutique. Bedazzled became home to An April March for the duration of their existence, and the group released two more albums, “Lessons In Vengeance” (1995) and “It Goes Without Saying” (1998), and two ep’s, “Adagio” (1996) and “…something once true, is always true” (1999), on the label. With each successive effort, An April March explored new sonic territory, adding elements of electronica, trip hop, and ambient to their lush guitar pop structures. The group also broadened their fanbase through a busy schedule of live performances, and participated in two “Bedazzled Caravan” package tours with other groups on the label, taking them into the U.S. to cities such as Boston, New York City, Detroit and Chicago.
As the ‘90’s ended, An April March also came to a close, finally disbanding in 2001. Hocevar and Perry continued working together briefly in a new project, redhotred. The group was exploring a diverse mix of electronic beats, cello, fretless bass, and keyboards, but after a few live shows (including an appearance at the NXNE festival) and some initial recordings, redhotred also dissolved. In 2006, Hocevar and Perry separated after a sixteen year personal relationship, ending their creative union. Hocevar soon refocused her energy and ideas, and began writing new material for a solo project. In the fall of 2007, she started recording her new music in collaboration with producer Roger Lavallee (vocalist/guitarist for The Curtain Society), and the promising results are currently posted in demo form on her Myspace page. With provocative titles such as “Stubborn Taurus”, “Junkie”, and “I Must Remember To Forget You”, Hocevar is entering a new phase of her musical career with a confident new sound and a fresh approach to songwriting, stripping back the heavy layers of guitar for a more direct and intimate feel. While the future of this project is at present undetermined, Hocevar is happy to have returned to her passion – the music.