Darren Hayman - The Ship's Piano

One from the heart. The ever busy former Hefner frontman releases an album of tender piano ballads.

In late 2009 Darren Hayman ended up in hospital with a fractured skull. In the following months of enforced recuperation he wrote a series of songs that ended up being his latest album The Ship's Piano. With constant dizziness and some deafness in one ear, anything loud or jarring was out. The resulting music Hayman describes as “round and smooth, like well worn pebbles”. It's an apt description. There's a gentleness and tasteful restraint at play, his playing style's not flashy or virtuoso, more “Lennon doing his simple chords” kinda stuff. Added to this are unobtrusive drums, the occasional trumpet solo and a bit of accordian. Save for four tracks it was all recorded at Hayman's home, giving the album an intimate and warm field-recording feel.

Perhaps also due to the therapeutic nature of the album's genesis, the lyrics are mostly first-person, simple yet still keenly observed as one would expect. Take A Breather is a middle-aged reflective love song of sorts, referencing lost gloves, rusty bicycle chains and leaves turning to mildew. Though still personal Oh Josephine benefits from Hayman's wry touch and ability to convey a scene with the smallest of details.

Click over the jump for more on The Ship's Piano.