Oliver Hazard - “Oh Mama Won’t You Write Me”
Oliver Hazard is probably the first indie folk that we’re hearing from Ohio. We’re not quite sure if it’s rare or if we just haven’t been looking hard enough, but, luckily, we have stumbled across the new track, “Oh Mama Won’t You Write Me,” an enjoyable and authentic contribution to the sea of raw and heartfelt music.
We have a fondness for an acoustic guitar performance that sounds as though it’s being played in the same room as wherever you happen to be listening. If we can’t imagine the sound coming from the living room, it is often difficult to offer it any real estate on the blog. But with Oliver Hazard, you get all of that good stuff: string squeaks and finger noise that remind you that some of the greatest sounds still come from actual living and breathing human beings, and not some VST that you can operate with a midi controller– not that there is not a time and place for that as well. But when the music is this authentic, it feels like an old friend who’s stopped by for a cup of coffee and a quick, three-minute hello.
After about thirty seconds, the vocals come in, just as warm and inviting as the guitar– untouched by production tricks or pitch correction, yet absolutely perfect in every way. After the first chorus, “Oh Mama Won’t You Write Me” checks another box on our wishlist of criteria for folk songs and that is a vocal harmony on the second verse. This spreads the sound and instantly widens the size of the track and we are often let down when others do not take advantage of this. Angelic background “oooh’s?” Check. Soft keys delicately sprinkled in from someone’s hands at a piano? Check. Fantastic and glorious crescendo at the very end? Heck yes. This song has everything you need to get your folk fix, so give it a couple spins and then hit Oliver Hazard’s back catalogue– you’ll thank us later.
And here’s a nice little lyric video for y’all, followed by the Spotify link because we know how much you kids love your Spotify:
-TM