Hello, Are You There? – John Consalvo (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

There is something of the meeting of worlds to be found in this latest song from John Consalvo. On the one hand, the lyrics have something to say and do so with wit and wisdom; on the other, the music is upbeat and buoyant. There is also a wonderful blend of pop accessibility and rock drive. And then there are the playful dynamics which take us from lulling lows to sky-scraping crescendoes, from solo acoustic deftness to full-on band energies.

As I say, it’s a song that sits at the crossroads of many possible sonic journies, explores all and is smart enough not to commit fully to any one of them in particular. That’s how you do it, that’s how you can never be labelled, pigeon-holed, put in a box or pointed at by those less discerning listeners who like everything given to them on a plate or, god-forbid, lazy journalists. And I should know because, given the option, I am often one.

But music like this makes the likes of me work hard to describe its many subtleties and traits, its clever constructions, and the way it gently subverts expectations. And if it does all that to someone merely putting pen to paper, imagine how rewarding it will be for you, the dear listener.

I guess this is music for, and indeed of, the post-genre world. With the tribal allegiances to musical factions left far behind us, artists are free to mix, merge, meld, and mould music in any way they like, talking influence and inspiration from any corner they choose, deftly hopping genres, carefully pushing down sonic barriers, looking under traditional rocks and finding new ideas mixed in with the older, more expected treasures.

It also shows that creating music without such demarcations doesn’t mean you suddenly have a flood of music playing with extremes. No, Hello, Are You There? is a song made in a familiar image; it is just that John Consalvo is free to add nuance and subtlety, form and function, sound and style from any number of genres and bring all of those factors together into a song that is perfect for the here and now and yet which echoes with all the cool traditions of the past—music which sounds both brilliantly fresh and also wonderfully familiar.

Pop? Perhaps. Rock? Yes, a bit. But more than those two terms imply, it is music that swings, grooves, bounces and engages. Music found between pop and a hard place? Yes, indeed.