Promotional Photo

Andrew Hoover says he got lucky when looking for a label

Andrew Hoover
With Alex Babini, Benji Davis Project and Curtis Peoples. Thu., Nov. 12. Acoustic Cafe, 2926 Fairfield Ave.,
Bridgeport. 8 p.m. (203) 335-3655, www.acousticafe.com

If you have a soft spot for soulful vocals, catchy melodies or heartstring-pulling songwriting, chances are you're going to like Andrew Hoover. The 22-year-old Fairfield native's debut release, Chances, Stances & Romances, was recently released by the Warner Brothers-distributed Rock Ridge Music, and it's quite impressive. A listening party at the Fairfield Theatre Company's StageOne last month was sold out.

Standout tracks include "Secrets," a captivating tune about the liberating sensation that comes from baring one's soul to that special loved one or friend, and the Memphis soul-flavored "Lie to Me."

When asked how his record deal came about, Hoover, who had served as a chef at an upscale Westport restaurant before seriously embarking on music, says in addition to hard work, an element of luck was involved.

"I got into the habit of going to my [musical] heroes' MySpace sites — people like Marc Broussard and Ray LaMontagne — and I would start to 'friend' their fans," Hoover says. "And it just so happened that one day a person whom I 'friended' worked at Rock Ridge Music, and I had no idea at the time. Anyway, she got in touch with me and said she really dug what I was doing and she started coming to some of my New York shows." Before he knew it, he was signed.

A huge fan of Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, Otis Redding, and the aforementioned Broussard and LaMontagne, Hoover says his songwriting is a spontaneous process. "I play the chord progression that fits my mood or emotion, and then from there I'll chunk together random words," he says. "It doesn't have to make sense at all until I find the proper melody and the chords. And then after I have the melody figured out in my head, I'll record just the melody and then go back and sit down later and write out the words for it."

A gifted acoustic guitar player, Hoover, who has already shared a stage with Sister Hazel, Elliott Yamin and Tim Reynolds, traces his unique percussive approach to his instrument to watching videos of his guitar-toting heroes on YouTube, particularly the blind singer-songwriter Raul Midon. "He does this very interesting flamenco slap technique, which I modeled my playing style after a lot," Hoover says.

Music appreciators will get the chance to see and hear both Hoover's skills on a Taylor 714 acoustic guitar and his vocal prowess as he sets out on a two-month tour that will take him as far south as South Carolina and as far west as Iowa.