Cedric Has a Name – it’s not a household name, but it’s a name Belfast songster Chris Steenson is hoping to make for himself. Aside from the slightly sniffy, hint of ‘indier than thou’ pseudonym he records under, the only other thing Steenson has to his own name in his first offering of tracks; ‘What We Want + 3 Songs‘ are the lonely strains of his acoustic guitar and the odd toot of his harmonica, two well worn tools of the lone musician but in this bare bones context forming a refreshing less-is-more sound.
It’s as naked a recording as debuts go, but at its heart lies the rudiments of an artist with a lot to give, as the quieter Irish bars have begun to learn over the past year. In the time Steenson has ventured out into the local singer-songwriter circuit he’s muscled in alongside members of more experienced and boisterous Belfast sweethearts like A Plastic Rose and Chocolate Love Factory, when they occasionally unplug.
In this debut EP Cedric Has a Name greets us with songs so bare, less lo-fi more ‘couldn’t get any lower-fi’, that you can almost hear the air gasping around him. Percussionless, unamplified, lyrically lead arrangements are spearheaded by Steenson’s softly spoken vocal. Neither truly optimistic nor desolate in tone, more reflective and searching, with the cheap and raw production (perhaps unintentionally) adding to his character. Like early Badly Drawn Boy in warmth and romanticism, but stripped bare of the label-funded grandeur, there’s no budget nor bombast for these songs to hide behind.
People talk about bedroom demos, but rather than computer mic-recorded, MySpace-destined stereotype tied to the term, you can instead picture these songs filling a lonesome apartment overlooking the less picture-esque side of town, but not quite to the extent of cockroaches roaming the walls.
What We Want by CedricHasaName
But the hollow quality doesn’t always give that extra dimension. Sometimes it restrains Steenson’s timid expression, leaving you wanting a tad more spirit for his songs to connect with you through.
The titular ‘What We Want‘ is tinged with effective backing harmonies, one of only a handful of spare post-production touches that contrasts nicely with the creak of the fretboard beneath his fingers. It’s an inventive use of the acoustics around him, allowing the songs room to breathe and leaving the imperfections to ring out into that crucial DIY production.
Sometimes the notes and rhythms he finds form something more interesting than the musings that coast over them, which demonstrates how it’s easy to become lost in the Cedric Has a Name’s distinct personality over the course of a four song EP.
He’s not always consistent in holding us but when something leaps out and catches us, the immediate melody of ‘Let’s Go Out Now‘ for example, we’re sure that there’s definitely something here – what it is though we’re not quite sure. A calming soundtrack to those treacherously wet afternoons through the summer months perhaps, and in typically Irish fashion we’re in no shortage of those at the moment.
(Daniel Robinson)
