Neilson Hubbard - Why Men Fail

Artist: Neilson Hubbard Title: Why Men Fail Catalog#:Parasol-CD-063 Price: $12.00	Tracks on this CD:
	Towns
	Speedin'
	Wonderful Pain
	Her Father's Buick
	The Last American Hero
	The Girl That Killed September
	Hollywood 1995
	Surrounded
	Where It Hurts
	Settle
	Beautiful Yesterday
	Sweet Goodnight

Listening to Neilson Hubbard's Why Men Fail is like walking into a dilapidated Victorian mansion. You can see the way the dust has accumulated on the music room's plush velvet divan, the way the gilt-framed oil painting over the fireplace has faded, the way the carpet spiraling up the staircase has grown threadbare. For Neilson Hubbard, the native Mississippi songwriter, there's beauty beneath all that decay, glory under all the grit. He conveys it in song and so doing; his music exudes a charming, gilt-framed, comfortably faded majesty. Hubbard's 1997 solo debut, The Slide Project, presented Neilson as a reborn pop revivalist veering from Kinks-ish rave ups to Cinnamon Girl-era Neil Young. Why Men Fail is the second Neilson Hubbard solo album and a major creative leap forward for the artist. Where The Slide Project showed him to possess a unique songwriting voice, Hubbard's new album thrusts him into the elite ranks of unsung song heroes like Freedy Johnston and Alex Chilton, Richard Davies and Epic Soundtracks. Compelling tunes like the cello-lined "Wonderful Pain" and the piano ballad "Girl Who Killed September" are heartstoppingly blue and utterly melancholic, while tracks like the funky "Last American Hero" and the chiming, organ fed "Surrounded" cut through that melancholy with a giddy energy. Still, it's Hubbard's acute and lyrical sense of sadness that makes him such a powerful voice as a songwriter.

REVIEWS

Entertainment Weekly - "This Mississippian’s material is drenched in disillusionment. But like top-tier confessional singer-songwriters Matthew Sweet and Elliot Smith, he puts his woes to good use, churning out baleful ballads and hymns that earn your empathy. Blessed with a earthy falsetto, plush melodies, and salvation-seeking stories, Hubbard’s got the goods to compete with the reigning mope-rock royalty." - A- Laura Morgan

Alternative Press - "From tender ballads to cello-inspired pop --and a funky clavinet-fueled tune - this album places Hubbard in the same class as his heroes (Freedy Johnston, Alex Chilton, Josh Rouse)."

Amplifier - "The follow-up, Why Men Fail, is an entirely different beast, on the other hand, and it definitely doesn’t sound like a standard-issue power pop album. The album title is first tip-off: this is not sunny, upbeat music. These twelve songs are mostly hushed minor key ballads, all stately tempos and vocals that sound like they were recorded in a library. The sound makes a lot more sense when you realize that the twenty-seven year-old Mississippi native got his start in a Galaxie 500 cover band; with its anguished vocals, sacoustiv guitar and mournful strings, the opening “Towns” sounds like it could have come directly off This Is Our Music.
Even the more uptempo songs, like the mildly funky “The Last American Hero,” which features an ultra-distorted clavinet that makes it sound like an outtake from Cotton Mather’s KonTiki, are rather dark, and the overall effect of listening to the whole album in one sitting can be pretty bleak. One the other hand, the songwriting is much more consistent this time around, and the arrangements feature enough cool touches and varied sounds to keep the album from sounding as monochromatic musically as it does lyrically. Power pop purists might consider Why Men Fail a little too much of a downer, but fans of the darker side of June and the Exit Wounds or Richard Davies will be in intrigued." -Stewart Mason

CMJ New Music Monthly - "Hubbard mimics the trajectory of genre standard bearers Big Star with his sophomore outing, jettisoning meat-and-potatoes rave-ups for melancholy after-hours strumming. The few remaining rockers (including the standout “Surrounded”) sound vaguely misplaced, as the intimate stylings of Why Men Fail focus attention on Hubbard’s plaintive tenor and introspective lyrics. His gift for hooks hasn’t abandoned him, though Hubbard now dispenses them via an economical string section or the keyboards of pop mainstay Peter Holsapple. “I’m ashamed of all my weakness,” Hubbard laments on the somber “The Girl that Killed September,” somehow still summoning the nerve to parade those foibles to powerful effect. Hubbard captures the spirit of a sensitive recluse pining for the girl that got away, whether or not he was ever really in the hunt. Left unchecked, his warble and unguarded high-wire act occasionally veer close to self-pity and mawkish balladry. Fortunately, longtime cohort Garrison Starr’s sweet vocals provide the perfect foil, anchoring several songs and leaving the sense that the majestically sad “Wonderful Pain” would have made an apt title track. Why Men Fail is a flawed but often brilliant album, and Hubbard deserves credit for venturing onto an emotional ledge." -Glen Sarvady

Alternative Press - "Neilson Hubbard contructs the sort of aching pop songs many attempt, but few execute so well." - KG

Bucketfull of Brains - "An air of glorious decay inhabits the music of Mississippi-born singer-songwriter Neilson Hubbard. There is a rich, dark quality to his music and an other-worldly spirit to his voice. But we are not talking grim, mournful, or doom-laden. Hubbard’s songs, while often swathed in sadness, are dignified, elegant, melancholy, and ultimately uplifting. His stunning album Why Men Fail is just out on Parasol Records, and it can only be a matter of time before people start to take notice of his unique talent.

I first heard of you via Nash Pop compilation put out on Not Lame a couple of years ago. How did you come to be involved with that project?
My bass player Jason Wilkins introduced me to the guys who were putting the compilation together. Jason and the rest of my band are from Nashville and I have spent a great deal of time there recording and playing. Nashville is kind of my home base, so the Nash Pop guys wanted to include me on the record.

How did you get into music in the first place?
I started singing when I was little. My mom was a singer. I always remember music being a big part of my life. I got a guitar when I was in high school. After many terrible cover bands(one dedicated to Galaxie 500!), I started writings and putting out tapes and CDs myself. After college my friend sent a demo to Adam Duritz and his managers. They were starting a label and they signed my band, The Living Hand.

I have heard you comparedc to the likes of Neil Young, Epic Soundtracks, and even the Kinks. But who do you consider your main influences?
The radio is a first influence. I remember riding in my grandmother’s car singing 50 ways to Leave your Lover, when I was about three years old. I just grew up on melody and I was thinking that that, along with being from the south, has had so much to do with my sound. Obviously, though I love the Beatles, Roy Orbison, the Beach Boys, Big Star, and the Ronettes. I also love Bjork, Tom Waits, and David Gray. I’m moved by great singers and great songs.

You have a very distinctive voice. Do you work at it or does it just come out?
I guess when I started I tried to sound like the people I loved. But when I became more serious about music, I began to find my own voice. Now I don’t really think about it. It just comes out like it comes out.

Paper Star is the best track on Nash Pop and one of the most original songs I’ve ever heard. Why wasn’t it a worldwide smash hit?
I don’t know, but my wife says it’s a bloody shame. Seriously though, I think a lot of it comes down to money. You need a lot of it to make something hit. Also you need a lot of people to like it. We didn’t have enough of those people therefore we must find them in the future.

Is it right that the first album, The Slide Project, was a collaboration of sorts?
Yes it was. Jason Wilkins, Chuck Hatcher, Craig Kampf, and the producer, Clay Jones, helped me build that record while in the studio. They were my songs, but it was very much a team effort.

How would you compare the new album to the first?
The new album is much more personal. It is much closer to my heart. This album is more atmospheric and moody. I think the songs are also better written. The last album was energetic this one is mellow.

Is it fair to say that the new album is more ethereal?
Yes the new album is definitely more ethereal than the last.

Why is it called Why Men Fail?
My friend found the title from an old 20s Psychology books. I loved it because it is immediately striking and intriguing. The title works very well with the records because failure is so much a part of our humanity. Failure is surrounded by so many human emotions - sadness, longing, loneliness, and fear. Even more positive emotions, like hope, happiness, and peace are directly related to our failure, because the pursuit of these desired emotions leads to the undesired ones when there is failure. That’s what happens because we are human, and that is what this is about."

A message from Neilson Hubbard:

Hello out there,

My name is Neilson Hubbard and I have just joined the Parasol team. They are now releasing my new record "Why Men Fail." For a while, the title of the record was proving very prophetic in our attempts to get it out there. It sat on a shelf for over a year when my last label bit the dust.

However, we have worked hard and found this record it's new home. So now I'm thrilled that all of you out there can hear it. Hopefully it will touch you in the same way. Give it a listen I think it will. It is a record about emotions, relationships, ups, downs, hopes, failures, and how we deal with them. This is music for humans.

Thanks for your support,
Neilson Hubbard