Press for The New World

From Rootstime (Belgium):

(Translated from Dutch)

A talented singer, guitarist and songwriter, Michael Hill lets us savor some peace and quiet on his first full-length solo CD, “The New World.” A former member of Slobberbone, Hill toured with the cowpunks to promote the CDs “Crow Pot Pie” (1996) and “Barrel Chested” (1997). In 1998, he formed a new group called 12lb.Test, who garnered critical acclaim for their debut album “Harm’s Way.” In 2000 however, he decided to go solo and relocate to Seattle, where he met up with Okla. singer-songwriter Nancy K. Dillon and cellist Dylan Rieck. Soul-mates on the same musical wavelength as Hill, they wound up playing a prominent role in the recording of his solo EP “Yours Truly” (2002). After producing Dillon’s solo CD, Hill decided to release his own CD, “The New World,” in February of 2004. Between the influence of The Boss, the uniquely original songs and the striking sound of his passionate alto cry, Hill’s work succeeds in recalling that of both the young Steve Earle and Hugh Moffat. A masterpiece indeed!


From Denton Record-Chronicle (Denton, Texas):

Change of Place: Journey more important than destination for Hill
05/16/2004
By Lucinda Breeding, Arts Editor

Michael Hill doesn't mind being honest about change. "I think that the thing with change is that it can be sad, and it can be positive. It has to do with growth, and sometimes it has to do with starting over, going back to the drawing board. Change can be uncomfortable," said the singer-songwriter who left Denton for Seattle about four years ago. When he left Denton, Hill had been building an indie career with Slobberbone, a band that has shopped Denton's sound around the country. He also logged hours with 12lb. Test and the Nick Brisco Band. He also worked as a music writer for the Denton Record-Chronicle and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Since he moved to Washington, though, Hill has ventured out on his own for a bit, releasing his solo debut Yours Truly in 2002. He recently released his latest album, The New World, a collection of hopeful songs cloaked in the melancholy Hill says he's a sucker for. The New World stands in stark contrast to the music aloft on the Top 40 pop charts. Popular urban and rap music specialize in layers of jarring noise, with plenty of digital manipulation in the process. The New World is Hill's tribute to spacious phrases and big, open lines. It's a simplicity that is both welcome and unusual in the scheme of things.

The record is clean, sporting Hill's homespun, folksy vocals, his acoustic guitar and Dylan Rieck's gentle cello. It's a sound that is, sonically speaking, commensurate with Hill's poetry, which insists that, sometimes, there is no simple straight line between point A and point B. Sometimes, settlers and explorers have to get past mountains and wild woodlands before they find home. "I think it has to do with trying to carve out a sort of musical identity that is unique to myself, and on a bigger scale, I think it has to do with the uncertainty of displacement from a place where there were a lot of people you knew. I will never forget the image of driving into Seattle from I-5, that first sight of those tall buildings. That image has stayed with me for years," Hill said. Hill cites specific influences, like early Bruce Springsteen and especially Townes Van Zandt. Some music writers might relegate Hill to the country and western bin, or chalk him up to another Texas roots music man. But there's more folk than meets the eye in this album. And more storytelling than you'll find on any top tier country album now on the shelves. "It seems like I've always been pretty contrary to what's popular," Hill said. "I think this happens pretty organically."

Nancy K. Dillon, a Seattle singer-songwriter, provided some vocals on The New World after working with Hill on his debut solo album. Hill and Dillon met through a mutual friend in the business, and discovered their musical tastes were similar; Dillon says Lucinda Williams and Townes Van Zandt are among her favorites. Hill and Dillon started performing together, and Hill co-produced her upcoming release Just Let Me Dream. "I feel like he has this unbelievable ability to get inside someone else's music, get inside their aura and bring out something completely new about it," Dillon said. Hill said producing is a "whole other means of creative expression for me." "It allows me to come at the songs and hear things in them that the writer may not. It also gives me an opportunity to try things I might not normally think to try on my own material and then turn around and apply those lessons the next time I take on a recording project of my own," he said. Dillon said she first connected with Hill, though, because they both came out of the plains and into Washington state.

"The things he talked about really reminded me a lot of my own experiences," she said. His life experiences and his songwriting make for spaciousness. "He's not one of these people who feels like he has to fill up every single space. I was really attracted to that, the landscape and the openness. It gives your mind a chance to drift a bit." Rieck's cello work on the album doesn't veer the project toward a symphonic feel. Instead, it adds some depth to its folk roots. "I first started playing with Dylan back when I was doing Yours Truly and I stayed in touch with him," Hill said. "I was looking for something else to flesh out some of the songs instrumentally. He laid down some pretty great cello tracks. They turned out really nicely, and I started calling him every time I had a gig." The New World as a treatise on change isn't unfathomable for a songwriter who's just become a father for the first time. "Someone asked me if I was going to write about the baby. I think I have to move away from something a little to address it, so I probably won't deal with that yet," he said. "It's interesting because I think moving away from Texas has helped me put more Texas in my music."


From Ctrl.Alt.Country (Belgium):

(Translated from Dutch)

As for Michael Hill, we previously reviewed his solo debut, the EP "Yours Truly." On that release, the former member of both 12lb.Test and Slobberbone surprised us with his direction and reminded us, at times, of a young Steve Earle. The situation is not inherently different on his first full-length solo CD, "The New World." On this home-recorded, self-released album, Hill explores further the twilight territory between country, folk, pop and bluegrass, and establishes himself once more as an extremely blessed songwriter. Whether on country-esque tunes like "Hard to Believe" and "Thanks for Nothing," tranquil pearls such as the title cut (which features the beautiful cello work of Dylan Rieck) or the old-timey "Left Behind," Hill makes it clear that we can continue to count on him. These musical short stories exemplify both a refreshing simplicity and a disarming beauty. Plus, any song that recounts a badly ended quarrel as well as "Anthem" is simply a killer song. We confidently recommend this album to fans of similar artists such as Rod Picott, Slaid Cleaves or - as was already mentioned - the young Steve Earle. A singer-songwriter with his heart in the right place . . .


From Roots Highway (Italy):

(Translated from Italian)

On the follow-up to his 2002 solo debut "Yours Truly," Michael Hill churns out a disc of extraordinary beauty, intense and full of meaning, but at the same time never over the top. Originally from Texas, but now a resident of Seattle, this versatile instrumentalist (who ranges easily between acoustic guitars, electric guitars, slide, organ and piano) takes advantage of collaborations with both old acquaintances (Dylan Rieck, cello, and Nancy K. Dillon, vocals) and newcomers (Michael Bristow, bass, and Jeremy Sever, percussion). With a nasally voice reminiscent of Dylan and simple, frank lyrics, he invites listeners to follow him on an ambitious journey that begins in hot, dusty Texas ("That Was My Town," where the vitality of the banjo sweeps away every crumb of melancholy) and advances toward The New World, a vague and very much unknown destination. Two things are certain however: first of all, he's not going there alone ("Left Behind" and "See You Around," which effectively opens the CD with some winning slide work and a decidedly catchy chorus); and second, sooner or later, he's going to get to where he's going - a place where he can sit alone in the sun of a new dawn and forget the difficult and painful past ("Quittin' Time," an apt closing number). "The New World" and "Anthem" use similar instrumentation (delicately finger-picked acoustic guitar and cello) and fully demonstrate Hill's compositional and interpretative abilities, making these two songs the high points of the album. "Anthem," its notes dark like bruises, serves as a desperate reminder of the futility of human conflict: there are no "winners," just "bombs bursting in the air." Shifting out of pure folksinger mode, Hill also finds time to reflect, ironically, on how difficult it is to believe in something when no one else does ("Hard to Believe," whose urgent acoustic guitar rhythms and melody make it unapologetically reminiscent of Springsteen's "Johnny 99.") and make literary references with "Hollow Ground" (inspired by the novel of the same name by Stephen Marion), a dark dance colored by intense brushstrokes of electric guitar.