Unlike so many others Harper doesn't force himself or his music on you through melodramatic vocals or hysterical guitar solos. Yet at the same time his music demands that you pay attention to it and it draws you in almost without you knowing. While a great many song have a catchy refrain, or some other sort of "hook" that grabs your attention, with Harper it's the entire song that envelops you. Right from the start you are immersed in whatever little world he has created in those four to five minutes of music and you experience that reality to its fullest. While you might not find yourself humming some catchy little tune after listening to White Lies For Dark Times, unlike so much pop music, you're not going to forget what you felt.
There's also a level of introspection and intelligence to Harper's lyrics that's unusual for this genre. "Shimmer And Shine's", whose lyric supplied the title for the disc, second verse shows a level of understanding about both personal relationships and society at large you don't see that often anymore. "Bring me the music for the revolution/It puts my mind at ease to know/We're the problem we're the solution/the cure the disease/But life is trying to force me/force me to trust/I've done all I can/I'll do what I must". I can't remember the last time I've heard a pop song where anybody's been willing to accept responsibility for anything. Nine times out of ten it's usually someone else's fault if the relationship breaks up or if there's something wrong with the world.
Than again, maturity is another thing that distinguishes Harper's music and lyrics from the herd. It hearkens back to what I said about him not needing to do anything ostentatious for the listener to pay attention to his songs. Part of that is the fact that he's confident enough in his abilities that he's willing to let them be judged on their merits as music, but it also means he respects his audience's intelligence enough not to insult them with such displays. That doesn't mean he can't uncork some wonderful guitar solos - both on slide and regular guitar - but it means the solos he plays are there for the music, not to puff up his ego.
Article comments
1 - Mike
You know, I just saw this tour in Chicago. And while Harper is so incredibly talented, it didn't come through. Much of the best guitar playing was left for Mozersky. I don't feel it was the best representation of Harper's true range. Anyway, I put up a review of the Chicago show on if anyone is interested.