A nasally twang, back-country sound, great songs
Late one night at Northern Soul in Hoboken, I was chatting with friends about the world-altering subject of the undeniable hotness of girls softball players. We were interrupted by music that was clearly not coming from the jukebox.
In typical inebriated musician style, we tried to guess at who it could be. Finally, I asked our bartender Paola (a former softball player by the way) and she told me it was a guy calling himself The Tallest Man On Earth.
Photo by Johan Stolpe
With a nasally twang and back-country sensibility conjuring up the likes of Guthry and Dylan (much to the dismay of anyone trying to write a review without making those very references), this guy surely was spawned in some rural American town. Maybe an old river trading post long past its financial prime. Or a farm now devoid of crops. Or a closed-down factory town. Not exactly.
The Tallest Man On Earth is the stage name of folk musician Kristian Matsson who hails from Dalarna, Sweden. Now, I don’t know much about Sweden past the jokes about Volvos and Ikea. I have to wonder what life must be like in his Scandinavian home to spark such a longing in his voice. The pain mixed with joy. The hobo-on-the-rails rhythm that shines thru his guitar.
Comparisons to Dylan are inevitable and unfortunate since they’re sparked mainly from the tone of his voice. I find this young man’s songs to be melodically strong and lyrically poetic enough to stand on their one merits.
Can you hear the influence? Of course, but you can also hear Hank Williams, Pete Seeger and Woody Guthry as well as Jeff Buckley and David Gray all mixed into his own thing. Simply put; if you like well-written songs delivered with a passion, then you will like The Tallest Man On Earth. Period.
See Also:
The Tallest Man On Earth
Buy Now:
The Tallest Man On Earth ‘Shallow Grave’
