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James Harvey says when he lived in New York, he used to wait for the subway to go by before practicing the high notes.
The young singer does have some pipes -- Bono-Thom Yorke-Jeff Buckley kind of pipes, which are in full bloom on his debut CD, "Message to the Underground."
Harvey is a Point Breeze native and CAPA grad who studied guitar and then went off to New York to perform as a solo artist.
"My days as a singer-songwriter came and went quite quick," he says. "There was always something more to what I wanted to do. There's an aggression to the music that worked with a band."
He formed a band up in New York and a few years ago hooked up with producer Rick Witkowski at Studio L to make a four-song demo. He later returned to make it a complete project.
"Message to the Underground" is a powerful set of anthemic rock songs about love and war that show off Harvey's stunning four-octave range. With songs like "Babylon," "I Don't Want to Die Alone" and "Sometimes I Think I've Seen Too Much," it makes for very high drama.
"It's not the music that I've always been drawn to," he says. "My eyes were opened a little bit in the mid-'90s when I listened to Jeff Buckley. That did a lot to open my mind to a different type of music. It just seems like we live in times that call for drama."
A number of the songs sound like would fit nicely on the radio between, say, U2 and Pearl Jam. It's going to take some convincing, though, for the modest Harvey to believe it.
"I'm hypercritical of all kinds of things relating to music," he says. "I hear a potential for some things that might be radio-friendly. I think a lot of stuff of it is just too 'out there' for radio. I can't see it fitting but if someone wants to play it, I have no problem with it."
Harvey, who lives in Pittsburgh again, will release "Message to the Underground" at Club Cafe Saturday in a pre-Halloween event that will feature his New York band, a jam by Rusted Root's Jim Donovan, and book release of Harvey's soon-to-be wife, Kim Chestney. - Scott Mervis
“James harvey is the first singer/songwriter/musician we have signed since Paul Simon. Like Paul, James has the depth of a songwriter who views the world with his own convictions. His voice is haunting and his guitar playing is precise. We are proud to have discovered tomorrow’s new breakthrough artist and to have him on Canadian American Records, where the future has always been built on our past.” -Joey Welz, CEO Canadian American Records - Canadian American Records
Discography
Message to the Underground (2004)
I Don't Want To Die Alone (2005)
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Bio
Singer/Songwriter, James Harvey is a Pittsburgh native who performs both alone and with his NYC band. His first CD, Message to the Underground, was produced by Rick Witkowski at Studio L; Re-released with new bonus tracks, his new CD, I Dont Want to Die Alone, is available in stores Fall 2005.
Harvey's work is always passionate and intense, and showcases his distinctive four octave vocal range. His unique vocal style pays homage to the work of Jeff Buckley,with an unforgettably ornate voice that never fails to move his listeners. His guitar work is equally as efficacious, with a spectrum of influences, from Micheal Hedges, to The Church, to Jimmy Page.
But as in all comparisons, the beauty is in the melding and personal gift that create Harvey's unique style and sound -- one that is adorned by complex lyrics that are at once poetic, disturbing and exhilarating.
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