Listen: Daniel Hart - "Bigger Cities, Thicker Doors"

It's the New Year! So out with the old, in with the new, right? Not quite! Seems like there's still a plethora of goodies from 2012 to discover. One of them being this new track from violinist/multi-instrumentalist Daniel Hart. 2012 saw the re-release of The Orientalist, Hart's first true solo record and a summation of Hart's earlier experiences in India. After its release, Daniel Hart apparently released "O Sangeeta" as a single and paired it along with this new track.

Simply put, the track is a knockout. After a St. Vincent-esque melody, his first verse hits and hits hard: "Humility comes down hard like a heavy rain, like a thunderstorm", Hart isn't pulling any punches and after a tiny bit of soft plodding and steadily gaining momentum, the track grows into a sweltering rock jam. Light touches of violin gymnastics before the ground opens up into a majestic sprawling expanse of driving bass riffs and cymbal smashes, "Bigger Cities, Thicker Doors" could've very well been The Orientalist's closing number equal parts cacophonous finale and dynamic tension release. But the fact that it's not only hints at Hart's songwriting growth as he aims higher and plumps deeper emotional depths without needing an album worth of lead in. I'm excited to see what else Daniel Hart has in store. If "Bigger Cities, Thicker Doors" is any indication it's sure to be good.

Daniel Hart - "How Can Love Be Wrong" video

Remember back in September when I posted about former St. Vincent musician Daniel Hart's solo record The Orientalist? No? Well violinist/multi-instrumentalist Daniel Hart released his solo debut earlier this year inspired by his adventures in India and the whole thing is just grand. But this post isn't about that. Well not directly anyway. Sometime since then Daniel Hart and actress/comedienne Charlyne Yi teamed up to make a music video for "How Can Love Be Wrong". The video might very well be the most epically adorable thing you've seen all year. There's a boy adventurer searching for his elephant, the aforementioned elephant made out of tons of material and operated by two people, and a dastardly moustachioed  villain. The plot is pretty straightforward: The boy is looking for his lost elephant who happens to have been elephant-napped by the dastard. They have a sword fight on the beach and peace is eventually restored. But color me impressed: the video features some stunningly brilliant cinematography and as simple as the plot is, it's cute and all kinds of awesome.

Enjoy the video for Daniel Hart's "How Can Love Be Wrong":

Daniel Hart - "How Can Love Be Wrong" from charlyne yi on Vimeo.

Daniel Hart - The Orientalist (2011)

This post was inevitable – only a matter of time, really. When St. Vincent played Central Park Summerstage, a hundred or so eyes were transfixed on the petite fashionista rocking out on the guitar and cooing sweetly over dark arrangements. Mine were on violinist/multi-instrumentalist Daniel Hart; my own affinity for string instruments wholly to blame. So of course when I found out he had a solo project, I was all over it. When not touring with St. Vincent or John Vanderslice, he could be found leading the ranks of The Physics of Meaning but earlier this year Daniel Hart released his first album, The Orientalist, under his own name.

Inspired by Hart’s travels and adventures in India, it’s clear from the rather groovy string-centric intro of “Van Gogh Sher Gil” that you’re about to hear something truly special. What Hart offers is a completely three-dimensional album – in stripped down acoustic ballad “Happy Together”, in noisy rhythmic “I Took the Western Rail to Ahmedabad”, or instrumental intros “Pink Walls Gather No Dust” and “Elizabeth Russell”. For being first and foremost a violinist, Hart finds a wonderful balance between strings and everything else. The Orientalist is not without its elegant string arrangements but Hart isn’t afraid to pair them up with bombastic electronics and gritty guitar riffs all the while never decreasing their beauty.

While Hart was no doubt inspired by his time in India, The Orientalist with its slick pop sensibilities proves that such experiences can no doubt be universal. You don’t have to cross an ocean or take foreign public transportation to connect with Hart’s songs. Aside from the intro to “God of Small Things”, the Indian influence is merely hinted at in song titles and offhand references. In doing this, Hart has avoided the pitfall of perceived hokey-ness.

You can listen to the whole album at Daniel Hart's Bandcamp: