Eric Hemion

“Enough of insisting it’s black or it’s white, when it’s green all along…”

This sentiment, expressed by Eric in song, sums up his approach to music and to life. While valuing simplicity, he avoids simple-mindedness. This approach is manifested musically in contrasts: straightforward pop hooks embedded in jazz-influenced harmonies, electronic aesthetics warmed by acoustic foundations, extroverted expressions of introverted sentiments, joy and sadness co-existing in bittersweet melancholy. Whether vocal or instrumental, autobiographical or fictional, first person or third, Eric’s songs provoke a satisfyingly complex emotional response – just like life.

Born in Manhattan and raised at the Jersey shore, Eric has been fascinated by music since childhood. He began studying piano at the age of eight, messing with guitar around age thirteen, started singing somewhere in there, and continues to dabble in a variety of other instruments. Exposed to basic music theory from a young age, he undertook a number of theoretical classes in high school, and majored in music at Bucknell University (Lewisburg, PA), where he earned a BA in music in 1991.

After performing professionally for several years at clubs in central NJ as a solo act, Eric co-founded alt-pop-rock band, 7minds, a long-time fixture in the NJ/NYC scene, with whom he sang and played keyboards and was a principal songwriter. 10-plus years with the band, which released five CDs on it’s own label and performed extensively in a wide variety of venues, provided Eric not only with additional on-stage experience, but honed his skills as a writer and arranger. (The seven-piece band included a trumpet, trombone, and tenor sax, in addition to its standard rock lineup.)

With the dissolution of 7minds in early 2005, Eric has returned his attention to a solo career, writing music for other performers and media, in addition to the growing repertoire of original music that he, himself, performs. Current projects include an album of material written in central California in the spring of 2005 (release slotted for mid-2006), re-issue of a collection produced in the years immediately after college, and a future album of material written during the 7minds era.

In terms of style, listen to the music! What can be said about Eric’s writing style, however, is that, while its roots lie in the storytelling tradition of songwriting giants like Billy Joel, Cat Stevens, and Jimmy Buffett, this classic songcrafting approach is liberally peppered with the more complex harmonic influence of a classical and jazz education, a love for exploration in a variety of genres, the irreverence and increasingly avant approach of alternative or “indie” rock and the underground, an appreciation for both traditional and modern production techniques, and a faithful devotion to well-written pop music. The bottom line is that you’ll probably walk away singing to yourself, and that’s the ultimate goal…