Cantinero

Infobox musical artist
Name = Cantinero


Img_capt = Mexico 2005
Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Christopher Lee Hicken
Alias =
Origin = West Bromwich, England
Instrument = Vocals
Guitar
Keyboards
Programming
Genre = Alternative pop
Baroque pop
Indie rock
Occupation = Singer-songwriter, Composer, Producer
Label = Artemis, V2
URL = [http://www.cantinero.com/ www.cantinero.com]

Chris Hicken (born in West Bromwich, England) is a British singer, songwriter/Composer, and producer who records under the name Cantinero. Currently based in the Village of Catskill New York, Hicken writes keenly observed, carefully crafted pop that blends acoustic and Spanish guitars, piano, and strings, with subtle electronic textures. His debut album, Championship Boxing, was released by indie label Artemis Records in 2004. He has completed a self-produced new album, entitled Better for the Metaphor, to be released in November 2008 on the Tinkle Tone Recordings Label.

Early years

Bigmouth:Hicken first arrived in the U.S. in in April 1993, a veteran of a number of unsigned bands, including his then-combo, Bigmouth. When Bigmouth’s guitarist suggested a trip to America, Hicken fell in love with New York City, where Bigmouth found itself welcomed by the city’s ex-pat British community. After two weeks and a handful of triumphant gigs, Bigmouth went back to Birmingham, returning a few months later, ostensibly to support fellow Brummies UB40 on an American tour. The band turned up at Toads Place in New Haven with a one-way truck rental full of hired gear only to discover that no one in UB40’s camp was expecting them. Fortunately, the pop-reggae hitmakers allowed Bigmouth to do the show, which went so well they were given the opening slot on the next six dates of the tour. The success of the UB40 trek confirmed Hicken’s belief that Bigmouth’s left-of-center pop-rock was best suited for American audiences. With that in mind, the band decided to make New York their new home.

Over the next few years, Bigmouth gigged all over town, building a substantial following via energetic performances and a self-released CD. They were courted by a number of major labels, but never quite closed the deal. By 1997, Hicken was disillusioned and decided to call it quits. “I couldn’t do it anymore,” he recalls. “I was in pieces. I’d show up for rehearsal and have these massive anxiety attacks. I had spent my whole life telling myself I was going to be a rock star, and then I realized it wasn’t going to happen. Dealing with that really crushed me.”

New York City

Hicken put his rock and roll fantasy behind him and earned a living tending bar in Manhattan’s East Village neighborhood. He redirected his intellectual energies into studying philosophy at The New School. He also maintained a healthy obsession with music, with a growing interest in electronic artists such as Boards of Canada. When his roommate, Spacehog drummer Johnny Cragg, invested in an assortment of computer recording gear, Hicken began to immerse himself in the creative process, gradually getting his head around the idea of making music again. "It became my solace learning my way around the technology, making these one-minute pieces of electronic music," he says.

Hicken played some tracks for a friend, Michael Chambers, former drummer in NYC combo, the Phoids, and one of the founders and owners of Artemis Records who liked what he heard and pushed Hicken to further his musical experiments. Burnt out from years of bartending, Hicken decided to take a shot. In May 2002, he finished a five-song demo and soon found himself with the very thing he’d been waiting for his whole life: a record deal. He invested the advance money in a home recording setup, converting a spare room of his four-bedroom flat into Lovely Studios. Moved by Ken Burns Jazz docu-series, he decided to focus on a more traditional sonic approach, opting to use acoustic instrumentation rather than computer-based technology.

Championship Boxing

Hicken’s debut album under the name Cantinero, a nickname bestowed on him by a Spanish bartender co-worker, was released by Artemis Records in 2004. Recorded at home with the window open, the songs are directly informed by Hicken’s experiences in New York, complete with samples of street sounds, his dogs barking, infomercials, and answering machines. Thematically, the album is “about the pursuit of a dream, and what to do with the rest of your life when the dream dissolves” [http://www.cantinero.com/index.php?p=media (City Life)]

The album received numerous positive reviews, which praised its mixture of bedroom pop intimacy and electronic textures. “Championship Boxing is compelling stuff — easy on the ears, but with depth and complexity in layers that grow with each new spin” [http://www.splendidezine.com/review.html?reviewid= (splendidzine.com)] . “A prolific songwriter with a majestic voice, Hicken is raw, affecting and honest—a quality often lost in the melding pot of today’s music. Traveling the road of finding his niche in an ever-changing music industry, Hicken has found his home by simply being himself—truly original and dedicated to the music he wishes to create [http://www.copperpress.com/new/reviews/html/12405cantinero.html (copperpress.com).]

In February 2005, NPR's Weekend Edition aired an 11-minute segment on Hicken. Reporter Sheilah Kast visited him at his home studio and talked to him about his music.

Better for the Metaphor

Hicken moved to a log cabin in the Catskills area of upstate New York in 2006 after ten years of living in Manhattan. There, in the middle of a convert|200|acre|km2|sing=on preserve next to Minnewaska State Park, he began to write the songs for his upcoming self-produced second album Better for the Metaphor. He recorded the album in an equally isolated place: Tinkle Tone Studios, which he helped his manager, Michael Chambers, build on 12 acres of land in the Hudson River Valley area of Rhinecliff.

The album displays Hicken’s talent for keenly observed insights into the complicated times in which we live. As he told his biographer: “I do feel very passionate about politics and what’s going on in the world right now,” Hicken says. “And I think the subject matter on the album reflects that, but I don’t like it when a song points its finger at me. I’m interested when a someone puts forward an observation without ramming their conclusion down my throat. I mean, let’s face it; there aren’t black and white answers to most problems, but you can observe the problems and write passionately about them. With what’s going on in the world, as an artist, how could you not write about it?”

As a result, Better for the Metaphor offers Hicken’s perceptive take on American sense of entitlement (“Go Getter”), the Bush administration’s manufactured culture of fear (“Safe”), the dangers of trumpeting one’s ideology (“My House”), the societal acceptance of anorexia (“Thinner”), and even a sing-songy ditty about using anti-depressants to make it all go away (“Medicated”). It’s food for thought, but it goes down easy thanks to Hicken’s prodigious gift for melody. “I do have an incredible sweet tooth for melody,” he says. “So I wanted to make the tunes poppy and catchy and accessible so that you can sing along without really knowing what the song is about.”

Discography

"Championship Boxing"
(Artemis Records)"'

"Musicians":

Christopher L Hicken. Vocals, Keyboards, Bass, Guitars, Programming, Percussion.

Richard Steel. Guitars, Bass, Vocals.

Martin Ewens. Bass

Christian Bongers. Bass

John Dely. Piano

Frank Ferrer. Drums

Johhny Cragg. Drums

Michael Chambers. Drums

Howard Rappaport. Slide Guitar

Ivan Armijos. Spoken Word

"Better for the Metaphor"
"(Tinkle Tone Recordings)"

"Musicians:"

Christopher.L.Hicken. Vocals, Guitars, keyboards, programming, Percussion, Bass.

Martin Ewens. Bass.

Scott Martin. Drums.

John Dely. Piano/Organ.

Harvey Mason. Drums.

Tamir Muskat. Drums.

Doug Derryberry. Guitars.

Johnny Cragg. Drums.

Dean Oloughlin. Vocals.

Jennifer Glass. Vocals.

Michael Chambers. Drums.

Skoota Warner. Drums.

Lisa Liu. Violin

Lauren Riley. Cello

James Armstrong. Vibes/Percussion

Paul Ogunsalu. Bass

Chad Fischer. Drums

External links

* [http://www.cantinero.com Official web site]
* [http://www.myspace.com/cantineromusic Myspace]
* [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId= NPR Weekend Edition Interview]