Debut Album Awareness: ‘Hale & Hearty’ by Heyward Howkins

Conjuring allusions to Smokey Robinson, Kid Congo Powers, David Lovering, and Fred Myrow, Philadelphia-based singer-songwriter Heyward Howkins is set to unleash his poignantly baroque The Hale & Hearty, an evocative amalgam of “British tweed (see Nick Drake)” and “dusty American flannel (see Bon Iver).”  Personally, it’s quite like nothing I’ve heard before (lyrically or musically), flaunting unusual yet powerful all-analog arrangements, guided by Howkins’ unique, rustically thespian vocals.  A smattering of the tunes gives off the husky Americana of Grizzly Bear (although not as dark), while others recall the raw textures (and horns) of Neutral Milk Hotel.