Deborah Hocking

by Frank Boner
bonemachine.net

Deborah Hocking is a Melbourne based guitarist and songwriter who has ditched the band scene to focus on her solo career. D-Day is actually one half of a twin CD release, the other CD Stage makes use of the full band production thingie... but I'll get to that bit later. Anyone who decides to have a crack at being an acoustic singer/guitarist probably needs to be a good player and have a good voice. Take away the band and there ain't nowhere to hide. That's the main reason I've always played in loud bands that can bury my thousands of bum notes and inventive harmonies. Deborah has these bases well and truly covered.

When I first listened to D-Day I felt like I was wandering around the Port Fairy Folk Festival with a gutful of Guinness, however after a couple more plays it becomes apparent that Deborah's stuff is not everyday, run of the mill folk. The lyrics head into much darker and more introspective moods than most folk singers dare to tread. Kind of like an Ani DiFranco angry diatribe. 'All I see are these walls surrounding me', 'To bail me briefly out of hell', 'My vehicle -- a pine box crafted by my friends', 'Til they put me in the hole'... you get the idea. I think I might invent a genre -- dark folk. (©Bonemachine. People may use it if they send me a heap of cash.)

Having ascertained that Deborah is dark, the music is certainly not depressing or angry. It is actually kind of uplifting. I like listening to someone who shares so much of themselves with the listener. There are 13 tracks on this CD and they somehow manage to be different enough to each other to make it a very enjoyable 50 minutes. There doesn't seem to be a distribution deal associated with Deborah's CDs, but if you check out www.deborahhocking.com you should be able to track yourself down a copy. If you like solo acoustic guitar music, folk with a bit of balls and substance, you will really get into Deborah Hocking. She is one of those names that I think you should remember as we will almost certainly be hearing more from her in the future.

Like I mentioned earlier, this CD is part of a twin release, the other being Stage, a 5 track EP with full band production. Of the two CDs, I prefer the more stripped back sound of D-Day and found it much easier to listen to than the over-produced Stage. I think Deborah's songs would definitely translate well to a full band recording, however I reckon that a more natural, less formulaic studio sound like The Waifs would suit her songs much better. In my opinion, the problem with Stage is that it sounds like the songs have been programmed and then Deborah has tried to sing around them, rather than the other way round. The drum machine negates a whole heap of the soul and feel that a live performance generates. I'd like to hear these tracks recorded with Deborah's guitar and a live drummer laying down the bedding tracks with her guiding the feel and tempo. Once that's done you can overdub to your heart's content and the feel will always be there. Call me fussy... I just have this thing about drum machines.