Hamell On Trial - The Terrorism (Of Everyday Life)
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What should you do when your son asks if you've ever done anything illegal? Easy if your name is Ed Hamell.
'I'm gonna lie! I'm gonna lie!' he foams on Inquiring Minds, the opening track on his recent album, Songs For Parents Who Enjoy Drugs.
Billed as comedy, Hamell's Edinburgh debut is more a one-man DIY odyssey through his decade-spanning back catalogue, unapologetically righteous world view and his life experiences.
Indeed, if Bill Hicks had ever tried his hand at bile-fuelled blues-punk, it might not have sounded too far removed from Halfway, a fretboard-leaping, self-deprecating rant against mediocrity.
By all accounts, however, Hicks never tended a crack bar in upstate New York, a stint during which Hamell most likely honed his deftness for speaking his mind while keeping the crowd onside. This is a man who could deal with a brawl.
Not that he has to here; a veteran of 250 shows a year, Hamell is a consummate performer who can salaciously slaver a ridiculous ode to cunnilingus before recounting the double death of his parents, all the while keeping the audience so enthralled they don't notice the gear shift.
12 August 2007
