Andy Minor: “You Don’t Know” – an encapsulating appeal made up of intimacy and honesty
Nineteen year old Andy Minor was raised in Florida and is now living in Alabama. A multi-instrumentalist, Andy is currently studying, “But only because I have a scholarship,” he says, “as music is my life and passion.” Not generally depressed, but pessimistic about the universe, Andy has a 1970’s organ in his apartment living room. A piece his dad found for 20 dollars in a thrift store. For some reason I actually induced myself to believe that the 70’s organ would have been the dominant instrument on Andy Minor’s new single “You Don’t Know”.
It isn’t, a jangling strummed guitar, and Andy’s voice has that honor, though I did hear an organ flirting across the arrangement at one point. Andy’s expressive range is as wide as it is subtle; his music can be turmoiled, hopeful, and despondent…all at the same time.
His style is more musical than it is aesthetic; from the lo-fi indie to alternative pop nuances of “You Don’t Know”, the chugging clean guitar makes itself signature recognizable alongside the harmonies and emotionally breaking voice. Andy’s visionary qualities are not terribly flashy or transgressive, and his great musical gifts are not those of innovation.
Instead, he quietly writes, hones, and records beautifully executed, deeply moving records not quite like any others. Though not a production luxury box of magical tricks, there is nothing tentative or unpolished about this single. It is probably exactly as Andy intended it to be – minimal and unfettered by bells and whistles.
If all your ammunition is a guitar, a voice, and almost nothing else, you really need to have something to say, to make any impression. The typical indie scene is a petri dish of varying ambitions, with the fullest praise reserved for the people living their art. The immediacy and intimacy of Andy Minor’s music creates an aura that many will find to reconcile with those indie ambitions.
An untutored wizard, Andy cast his spells within compact runtimes. “You Don’t Know” runs for just over three minutes, a Andy tends toward the interior with his songwriting, building a comfortable structure to house the slights, wounds and fears he feels close. The care that he lavishes on form and timbre is nearly equaled with that given to metaphor, directness and rhyme.
You’ll wallow in the clear melody; Andy’s sweet vocals which evoke such intimacy, and you will genuinely be startled by the unpretentiousness of it all in the age of booty and swagger. Bridging the gap between a basement-recorded sound and a more expansive live appearance, “You Don’t Know” permeates an encapsulating appeal made up of intimacy and honesty.
Here, the raw potential on display reaches its full potential in Andy Minor’s world, which is equal parts bleak and beautiful. Andy is currently completing an album which he hopes to release within the next 2 months.
OFFICIAL LINKS: INSTAGRAM – TWITTER – MUSIC STREAMS
