Touring as a solo acoustic performer, Andrew Hoover keeps his music danceable by slapping his guitar strings—a technique similar to that of funk bassists. He learned the modus watching clips of Raul Midon on YouTube.
“It adds an R&B groove when you put that up through a good sound system in a club,” Hoover, 22, says. His 2009 album “Chances, Stances and Romances” contains tracks that echo Stevie Wonder by way of Dave Matthews, such as “Lie to Me” and “Love Goes on Forever.” There’s also boudoir balladry on tunes like “Saturday.”
This fall, Hoover is opening shows for Benjy Davis Project. Their itinerary includes a stop at Stubbs’ Bar-B-Cue, the Austin, Texas, venue that’s played host to artists ranging from The White Stripes to Metallica. “I’ve never played Texas before, but I’ve heard amazing things,” Hoover says. “I’m also real excited about playing Jammin’ Java in Virginia. The last time I played Virginia, I opened for Elliot Yamin from “American Idol.” There were 500 people there and you could hear a pin drop. I hope some of them come back.”
Your album dropped on Sept. 22. What are some of the records you’ve bought the first day they were released? Hold on, I’m going to open up my iTunes. The Ray LaMontagne albums. The one closest to now was “Gossip in the Grain.” Usually for my musical heroes, I’ll pre-order them and they come right to my house.
You just did some in-stores at a few Borders locations. Why do you choose to promote your album that way? It’s just one more way to get people to pick up your record from the store rather than at the show. If people want to purchase your album at the store, the store keeps putting it on their shelves.
Earlier this year, Clear Channel featured you as their “artist to watch.” Where does radio fit into your efforts to take your career to the next level? To be honest, I personally don’t listen to the radio much. Getting radio airplay isn’t a goal of mine. But if you’re on radio it means the vast majority of people like you and you have a certain amount of success.
Then, what are your career goals? I want to be able to headline and fill up venues like the Paradise Rock Club in Boston and Irving Plaza in New York. I would love to be able to play the theater circuit as well.
You spent some time as a teenager apprenticing in four-star restaurants. Are there any lessons you learned there you carry over to your music career? There’s so much bustle in both the kitchen and on the road. In the kitchen you may have a lot of pans going and you’re trying to plate a dish as more tickets are printing out. On the road, you get up at 7 a.m., do an interview and make an eight-hour drive that turns into 10 hours because of traffic. Then you show up 35 minutes before you’re supposed to hit the stage. It’s about trying to breathe.
Andrew Hoover opens for Benjy Davis Project at 8:30 p.m. Nov. 5 at The Handlebar. Tickets are $8. Call 864-233-6173 for more.
And for more information on Andrew Hoover, check out his Web site at www.andrewhoovermusic.com.
