Music
Press
It's been quite some time since I've had the aural pleasure recently bestowed upon me by Joel Hagman's Caught on a Rail. Never has it been so easy to fully appreciate and enjoy an album from first note to final fade out. Hagman has made an inspiring addition to the landscape of modern American folk music and will always be remembered for having done so.
In his song writing, Joel commands wisdom and experience beyond his years. There is an undeniable depth to his original material in both the lyrics and the chord progressions that defy the simplicity his arrangements seem rooted around. The raw emotion that pours out of him throughout each song is palpable, as if you could hold it in your hands. The trio augments and solidifies these expertly crafted pieces of music with grounded but inventive bass lines and mellifluous lead guitar that strengthens the melody and adds some down home solos without detracting or distracting from the heartbeat of the song.
Although Caught on a Rail is Hagman's maiden voyage his compositions speak with a voice both powerful and charismatic. What we are witnessing is the birth and growth of America's next great singer/song writer. In a world cluttered and marred by gimmick and superficiality Joel Hagman has introduced us to something real and true.
Caught on a Rail can be purchased online at CD baby or at any Joel Hagman live performance. You will find him on my space and in/around Seattle, WA. - associatedcontent.com
Discography
Caught on a Rail 2008
Photos
Bio
Joel has perhaps stumbled over the shoe strings of his imagination, but it has inherently dropped him into the hearts of many listeners, borrowing, if not stealing poetic intelligence, from many past and present conspirators of similar intention. Spending the last five years learning the funeral trade and studying the behavior and psyche of those with powerfully true stories, he has learned a great many things that have afforded him a level of understanding seemingly beyond his years. Taking what he's learned from those willing to teach, he has applied himself, and his knowledge to his first love, writing. Joel's long studies in Jazz and in appalachian music have given him a very unique and comforting sound of his own. His 2008 release of Caught on a Rail is a perfect example of this sound, ranging from locomotive driven to captivating guitar picking with sweetly drifting leads.
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