Search - Hayseed :: Melic

Christopher Wyant is purposely trying to confound your expectations. Son of a Pentecostal preacher, Wyant dons overalls and wire-rimmed glasses and calls himself Hayseed. The musical foundations for his songs lean heavily on pure, unadulterated, acoustic, old-time music. Yet, upon closer inspection, you find that the Kentuckian with the potent pipes is influenced by Shelley as much as by Grandpa Jones. His reflections on modern life have a strong metaphysical bent, concentrating on notions that are more spiritual than religious, and more archetypical than specific. Even the instrumental interlude, called "Voices" oddly enough, treads a line between American old-time and European classical. Helped by a solid group of pickers and singers (including Lucinda Williams), Hayseed blazes a provocative trail. --Marc Greilsamer