For Dream Catcher, Patrick Hazell focuses on lyrics with a mystical dream quality. Most of the songs cling to the message of allure and tend to peak one's curiosity. But the best of the pieces have a Wolfman Jack-esque gritty quality. "The Ghost House" is an excellent example of when Patrick Hazell shines brightest. A blues essence is at the root of the melody, with sharp accentuating harmonica riffs coloring the piece vibrantly and Hazell's gritty vocal presentation complete the portrait. His weakest pieces melodically are his poetic compositions of which a majority of the songs fall under. "Come Dance With Me," "The Gravel Road," and "Where Can I Turn To" are some of the pieces which have a strong poetic character. The instrumental accents in these pieces are inserted for soundtrack effect and can be appreciated in that context only. While these songs make it hard to pigeonhole Hazell into one genre, they appear to be where he wants to focus his creative outlet. So having been linked to the jazz and blues genre does not satisfy Hazell, and he looks to expand to a more progressive and unrestricted style of songwriting. It works on a few of his pieces, but most fall into the uncommercial realm of music marketing -- in other words, they fall short of reaching the pop music scene by quite a distance. Attractive to the minor music market, possibly, but even that may be of a speculative nature. Hazell has broken from tradition and wanders in a musical world few dare to explore. His presentations have strength, if not melodically, certainly his emotional strength is in the contents. If one is searching for something unique and complex, Dream Catcher may just be what one has been dreaming about.
© Larry Belanger /TiVo