In Van Morrison's words, Hawksley Workman must be into the mystic.
Not only does the Toronto-based singer-songwriter exude a stunning awareness of himself and his environs, he can somehow magically make a music reporter the subject of a phone interview.
Before discussing his indie debut, For Him and the Girls, along with his appearance tomorrow night at the Black Sheep Inn, Workman commences the conversation with, "I'm obsessed with people's little quirks."
For instance?
"You're from out East, right? I can just tell from your voice," Workman says, perhaps honing in on my 'tick' Maritime accent. He pauses, then responds, "And it's actually not from your accent, either. There's a certain enthusiasm that I doubt you'll ever be able to hide in your voice. I can sense you just have this East Coast enthusiasm."
Uh, how does this guy know who I am?
"You're writing for the Sun," he immediately replies. Can't remember telling him that. Brain cells are baffled.
Hard Knocks U
The subject reverts back to Workman. Released late last year on his own Isadora label, For Him and the Girls breathes a fresh air of cabaret-style piano pop and fuzzy guitar, garnering critical raves from across the country. The 24-year-old explains his art as if he were a self-taught music major at the proverbial Hard Knocks U.
"In a lot of ways, music is my greatest passion and it's my closest lover," Workman says. "At the same time, it's also at a point of deep criticism and frustration."
Confident without being cocky, self-assured without being self-serving, Workman says he backs up every word and every nuance with a fascination for the way people live their lives.
"I love the human being," he says. "I don't pretend to ... I don't want to sound overly negative, because I think life is still rich ..."
He pauses again. "I can just tell from your voice that you probably live a fairly rich existence yourself."
Oh, if he only knew ...
NEW CAVE DWELLINGS: With the recent shutdown of The Hi-Fi (and Perfect Strangers soon to follow), there's buzz over the rumoured closure of The Cave. If truth be told, The Cave is only temporarily closing. "The Cave will be undergoing extensive renovations," says Pam Slinger, the club's director of promotions. "When we do reopen, capacity will probably be about 350-400 people. It'll be broken down with two separate areas -- a relaxing atmosphere and an active dance floor." Slinger also notes the refurbished Cave will also give in-town and out-of-town DJs a place to perform. Expect a June re-opening.
