- Bryon Harris
MoeDeLL - 'Porch'
Review by Sylvie Marie & Staff
MoeDeLL's "Porch" is as inviting as a cold glass of lemonade on a hot summer day. The song commences with solo acoustic guitar, strumming delicately like a bluegrass sun, with a bright tone enhanced by sparkles of tiny riffs and arpeggios. The guitar offers rhythmic interest and doesn't rely on basic strum patterns for an engaging musical landscape.
MoeDeLL enters singing, "This old lawn-chair don't cut it anymore. Gonna chop down a tree, gonna build me a porch. So you and me we got a place on Sunday mornin' to talk about everything everybody's doing." MoeDeLL's voice, produced with hints of reverb, sits forward in the mix allowing the vocal story to take center stage. Have you ever heard someone tell a story, out on their front porch, where everyone sits around, captivated and spellbound? This is the vibe that MoeDeLL creates with his natural and inviting vocal performance and story-telling lyrics.
As the upbeat song progresses, the musical textures expand with the addition of bass and a deep drum beat that eventually opens up into a snazzy beat on 2 and 4, perfect for tapping your foot along. Fine and tight musicianship can be heard from beginning to end.
"Porch" is a song about what matters most in life and making the space and time to enjoy it. The song opens with a tree that will be built into a porch which signifies making more room in your life for the simple things. The porch is a platform for spending time with the people you love and watching life unfold in all of it's simple majesty. The song's vivid imagery showcases MoeDeLL's creative, poetic genius as he describes the porch that faces west, the sunset, people driving driving by, clothes hanging on the line, neighbors cussing and fighting. In these small details, listeners are not just invited to listen - they can feel and experience the song. This kind of songwriting is what great Americana is all about.
The chorus of "Porch" is a splash of happiness that you can store in your head and sing along to whenever you need a reminder to slow down and appreciate the simple things.
"You and me, we're doing fine, hanging around watching the world go by. You and me, we're doin' alright, sitting up here watching the world go by."
"Porch" is about the slice of life moments that reassure us that life is just fine. It is a reminder to sit back and relax and take it all in. And when life gives you rain, that porch (the good memories and small simple things) is your shelter. In "Porch" MoeDeLL has captured more than a day on the deck - he has captured what life is all about.
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About MoeDell
MoeDeLL is a prolific Americana songwriter who is known for his creative lyrics and unique voice. As he plays his guitar and sings, his foot stomping down home melodies and rolling rhythms bring you deep into his tales.
Back when he first started making music for a living, MoeDeLL received a sage piece of advice: "Play the same in front of 5 people as you would in front of 5,000." Over the years, the multi-talented rocker turned Country/Americana powerhouse has performed for crowds of every size, opening for the likes of Antigone Rising, Better Than Ezra, Cheap Trick, Bret Michaels, and members of Blind Melon. Engaging a relentless touring schedule of 250-270 shows a year, he holds court everywhere from farmer's markets to bars and corporate events.
His band Monkey In A Mansuit released a funk/rock album in 2002 and received a decent amount of local radio play. In 2004, he released his first solo EP and was signed to an independent record label. Aquarium Records released MoeDeLL's 2006 album "Out There" and "Kairos" in 2010. He also self released "The Inevitable" EP in 2010. Leaving the record label and being away from home for a decade, old country and bluegrass was resurfacing in his playing. "I've been writing for quite some time, but when I switched genres in 2014, I feel like my songwriting became more of who I really am, particularly when it came to lyrics. I feel at home writing about day to day life and the simple things. When people get off work and head to the local watering hole for a beer, they don't want to decipher words and meanings, they just want to listen to a good catchy tune. Even if my lyrics have some deep underlying meaning, I try to present them in a simple way." For more information on MoeDell, pleae visit his website.