Track listing: Tractor Beam, Caveat Emptor, 767, Waiting By The Phone, Evangeline Hop, High In The Shadows, Natural Fact, Wiggle In My Soul, Tina Tina!, Hard Black Train
A working man's singer/songwriter, Kurt Hagardorn is a New Orleans native, Portland-based artist who writes no-nonsense straight-forward rock 'n' roll. His tunes at once unite the pop sensibilities of Matthew Sweet with the maturity and depth of The Jayhawks, and just a little Nick Lowe smirky humor thrown in for good measure.
Hagardorn's latest effort dropped on December 17, 2023. An Analog Man In A Digital World kicks off with the kitschy and futuristic ditty, "Tractor Beam," expressing the geeky crush we've all had at some point. "Caveat Emptor" hits with a more ol' school Stones rockabilly feel to it--boogie woogie piano, horns 'n' all.
The album gets funky with "Evangeline Hop" and dabbles with Southern-inspired riffs throughout. From top to bottom, all tracks share the common threads of tight musicianship, smart arrangements, and a in-your-face delivery of the goods.
You can go analog on vinyl or stick with digital bits and bytes--either way, take a listen to An Analog Man In A Digital World on Bandcamp and follow Kurt Hagardorn on Spotify. It's bound to put a little "Wiggle In [your] Soul."