Joe Driscoll

by Jon Fletcher

Gone are the days when a one-man band meant a banjo, a peddle drum and a harmonica...

"An unassuming New Yorker, Driscoll has spent two years in London generating a live reputation with a one man show of beatbox and guitar, using looping to build and generate his songs. 'Origin Myths' uses this base in a more considered recorded format"

Joe Driscoll doesn't come over as a particularly good guitar player and he doesn't have a particularly good voice, yet this is a man who oozes talent and balls from every pore. The magic lies in his sense of the interplay between rhythm and melody, generating a unique cross-stitch of genres that centres on hip-hop but strays through reggae and folk.

An unassuming New Yorker, Driscoll has spent two years in London generating a live reputation with a one man show of beatbox and guitar, using looping to build and generate his songs. 'Origin Myths' uses this base in a more considered recorded format, but even so, Driscoll's debut is a solo product - simple guitar lines with beats, rap and the occasional sung chorus line adding depth. It's gently infectious stuff, though at just six full tracks (with an additional two 'skits'), the CD element of the release only just escapes being an EP.

The DVD includes an interview in which Driscoll attempts (with only limited success) to explain the intricacies of his looping technique, as well as recordings of two live shows at London's Rhythm Factory and Cargo. It is these, perhaps more than anything else, that make this release so worth tracking down, engaging as they are in the imperfections of the delivery, whilst captivating with both their technical delivery and musical hooks. Watching an artist have to explicitly tell an audience that what they are about to witness is all live is one thing, but when the end of the explanation is itself looped into the beginning of a song, it's difficult not to be impressed.

Driscoll is also relatively laid back about his own musical positioning, though there are hints at the inevitable self-justification that comes with any white hip hop act. It's a shame - we've heard it before - and in common with some of his other key themes - politics and youth for instance, his lyrics can at times be a little pondering and deliberate. All the same, the talent on show should not be underestimated - what's on offer already is refreshing and perhaps, even a little inspiring.

PHOTO by LAURA STERN

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