Carol Hodge (great name ) – and I make no apologies for writing about an album that came out last year. Unfortunately, I only heard it for the first time earlier this year otherwise I’m positive it would have featured in my end of year lists, as it is an album I keep coming back to time and again.
Stop the World…
From the piano of the opening bars of Stop the World in its Tracks through to the affecting close of the deeply personal and raw Bear with Me, I am overwhelmingly emotionally invested in the album. Music is nothing if it doesn’t grab you and fill you with emotion, it doesn’t matter what that emotion is – joy, anger, sadness… anything that engages you, allowing you to lose yourself in the music and feel your skin tingle with raw emotion is alright with me. To bring tears to me eyes one minute and a joyous smile the next.
Carol Hodge ticks every box, on the first listen to this album I felt like a wrung-out rag, like a I had been exorcised in some way, drained of all toxins and evil and reborn.
Unsurprisingly, Carol is well sought after for her talent, touring and tinkling the ivories with the likes of the magnificent Ryan Hamilton and the Harlequin Ghosts and Steve Ignorant’s Slice of Life.
Raw & Honest
Many bands that would like to think they have something to say can’t hold a candle to Hold on to That Flame, the album demonstrates more passion in its piano-based ballads than a large swathe of politically charged guitar and punk bands could ever hope to match.
Carol’s observations of life are raw, honest and political (with both a small and large P), observations on the state of the country and how it impacts people its people. Elsewhere, as with the aforementioned Bear with Me, laying bare her own soul. I mentioned joy, anger and sadness earlier, these are emotions conveyed often within the space of one song on this album. From my very first listen of this album I was hooked, make your way through the through the first two tracks and you reach the wondrous radiance that is You Don’t Dream Enough
“II you can‘t fit all of your things into the back of your car then you own too much, if you can fit all of you dreams into the palm of one hand then you don’t dream enough” Absolutely.
First World Problems features some of the angriest piano playing I’ve ever heard. “I have no sympathy for those that don’t know they’re born” sings Carol in this ireful message. While Your Heart is Breaking juxtaposes the anger with tender beauty and despair.
Fallibility
Fallibility adds dramatic drums to great effect, a torch song to love lost due to the inability of the antagonist to see the wrong in themselves. Elsewhere, The Witch is Dead makes me immediately think of Thatcher, but I could be wrong, whatever the subject, it is a song that reminds you that there will always be evil at large, and to hold those you love close.
There is not a bad song on this album, Carol is undoubtedly one of the countries supremely talented songwriters and deserves to have people shouting from the rooftops about her talent.
Despite several on-line conversations (we Hodges must stick together you know), I still haven’t had the fortune to witness a live show (despite attempting to make a house concert “work” at some point). Some of my fellow Glaswegians had the opportunity to see her play with Steve Ignorant in the weekend just past and she will be returning as part of next year’s Scotland Calling line up, but Glasgow, I need you. If you haven’t already done so, go and listen to this album, but it and show your support, I won’t rest now until the Hodges take over… but in the meantime I’d settle for a gig in Glasgow.
Visit Chopback Records to buy a copy of the album