Maximilian Hecker
Lady Sleep

LA RECENSIONE

Some elements bring the music of this German who releases under Kitty-Yo closer to Jeff Buckley. But it's also true that many more seem to recall him while being at the complete opposite extreme.
Don't worry, I hope to be more explicit in the following lines.

Let's look at the similarities: an angelic and inspired voice, a great knack for non-trivial yet pop melodies, and a meticulous attention to the arrangements and lyrics of his creations. But in Hecker, the epic nature and the innate inclination to explore one's own musical soul (and beyond) transform into intimacy and a quest for protection, both to give and to receive. The complex guitar rides turn into hinted melodic lines of piano with the addition of some strings (always a bit too crowd-pleasing). The unattainable loves and the existential challenges (boring and predictably obsessive!) are here instead delicate songs written with love sighs on withered rose petals.
Particular mentions go to the electro-ballad "Help Me" (single), the opening "Birch," and the Icelandic "Dying" and "Yeah, Eventually She Goes" (hey, here Max included a distorted guitar!).
Romanticism, therefore, in full swing. For those who love Jay-Jay Johanson, Stina Nordenstam, perhaps even Yann Tiersen... and who hold their pillow tight knowing that he, unfortunately, will not go away.