Hannah Wicklund – ‘Live At The Troubadour’

Her name is Hannah Wicklund... and she’s astonishing. If you’ve never heard of her, rectify that immediately.

I first became aware of Hannah Wicklund when I was sent the ‘Hannah Wicklund And The Stepping Stones’ album to review in 2018. I remember hearing the guitar work and her powerful voice, and doing a double-take when I saw on the press release that she was only twenty-years-old! I was sure that must have been a typo, but no; not only was it correct, she’d already got two thousand gigs under her belt, and that was her third record!

I was then sent a stream of her album ‘The Prize’ last year to review. Now working simply under her own name, she once again blew my mind, with me commenting “to be able to craft such a classy album with such strong vocals borders on the ridiculous”, and then summing things up with, “there are people who have been professional musicians longer than she’s been alive who haven’t made a record as assured as this”. I still stand by that statement, and now she releases a live album. I’ve not seen her live yet myself, but two people I know, whose musical opinion I covet, have told me on stage is where you truly see how exceptional she is.

This is immediately apparent with opener ‘Hell Or High Water’, which builds to a crescendo, before Wicklund’s powerful, soulful voice cuts through. Her passion and emotion enthralls you as you listen to her wail out ‘Hide And Seek’, and the Amy Winehouse-esque smokey vibe of ‘Witness’ shows her versatility. However, when you hear her on a stripped-down track like ‘Lost Love’, you really appreciate the level she sings at.

Whether it’s the wonderful, dreamy ‘Shadows And Porcelain Faces’, or the grittier stomp of ‘Can’t Get Enough’, the dazzling instrumental break of ‘Jam In E Minor’, or the powerhouse showstopping thumper ‘Bomb Through The Breeze’, everything on here is stunning. This is not an album that needed auto-tune, pitch correction, overdubs or studio polish. You can just feel this is an accurate document of a rare and special talent, captured in her natural habitat.

Her name is Hannah Wicklund... and she’s astonishing. If you’ve never heard of her, rectify that immediately.

Reviewer: James Gaden

Label: Strawberyy Moon

Genre: Rock

Issue Reviewed In: 110

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