Maximilian Hecker: Live Radio Sessions

We can’t all be Nina Simone or Scott Walker, but there is something fascinating about unbridled, idiosyncratic singing with a healthy disregard for fashion. There is also something neat about men expressing their emotions, or so I hear. For these reasons, and having read that he is equal parts Tiny Tim and Nick Drake, I expected to want to clasp Maximilian Hecker to the bosom of my musical adoration and squeeze his cute little head until it burst. Alas, although Hecker can sing, Live Radio Sessions proved unsuitable for my listening pleasure. While the turgid arrangements almost lulled me into a state of catatonic bliss, thankfully this was hijacked by lines like “You’re the goddess of my daydreams”, “Paralyzed by ancient delight” and “Tomorrow is the first day of my life”. Even then I clung to the hope that this was intentionally humorous, ironic, or something. Luckily, the overwrought upper-register melancholy continued until it struck me that this is a godsend for those who would welcome the humorless whimpering of the bastard son of Elliot Smith and Coldplay done in a style that could finish fourth in the Eurovision Song Contest circa 1989. Should be a massive hit, then.