The new LP by eclectic and versatile rocker Greg Hoy, “Yay For Effort”, is now available on Bandcamp, Spotify and all the major services with a planned first single/video “Comfort Vendetta” coming to YouTube soon.
Piano and acoustic themes abound under lyrical reflections about the rapid-fire loss of several close people in his life: his father, a college bandmate, and his career mentor. Quieter, piano pop motifs are supplemented by the occasional drum loop, 80’s sample, or a familiar distorted melodic guitar of past work - yet still reflective of the energy of his live shows. Make no mistake: there's still plenty of both power and pop, even as it's delivered in a more quiet, introspective way.
The closing of San Francisco’s famed indie Tiny Telephone studio - where Hoy first recorded after moving west over a decade ago - allowed his purchase of the studio’s coveted 1970’s Eventide Harmonizer effects unit used on albums by John Vanderslice, Spoon, Sleater-Kinney, John Doe, and countless others. This helped shape an album as varied as the FM-radio comfort food music of his youth which he revisited often over the past years including Eno-era David Bowie, Joni Mitchell, T-Rex, Elvis Costello, and early solo Peter Gabriel.
Greg meticulously wrote, played, recorded, mixed, and mastered the 10 song LP by himself holed up in his California mountain house. The result is all the more impressive considering it was recorded in sessions between floods, fires, pandemics, and while becoming a parent for the first time. The album is also the first to be released under Hoy’s new publishing company Earhopper Songs.
Yay for Effort Summer Tour dates:
6/24 Pacifica CA Winters Tavern
7/08 San Francisco CA Hotel Utah
7/14 Rockville MD Hank Dietle's
7/15 Pittsburgh PA Club Cafe
7/16 Youngstown Westside Bowl
7/18 Brooklyn NY (live recording) Leesta Vall
7/19 New Haven CT Three Sheets
7/20 NYC Arlene’s Grocery
7/21 Philadelphia PA The Fire
7/22 Mechanicsburg PA Metropolis
8/12 Alameda CA The Fireside
East Bay, CA-based songwriter Greg Hoy - who's recorded with Steve Albini (Nirvana, Pixies), Sylvia Massy (Johnny Cash, Tom Petty), and John Vanderslice (Spoon, Nada Surf) - toured 25 dates across the US in the fall of 2021 supporting his latest vinyl LP release 'Cacophony'. Comparisons to Jack White, Tom Petty, and Brittany Howard aside, the veteran songwriter has been a long time critical favorite. Hip-hop icon Ice-T appeared in his recent music video for 'Can You Take It?' which was nominated for a California Music Video Award. Picked to take part in the 2021 Durango Songwriters Showcase for Film & TV, his songs have been heard on networks such as the CW, HBO, and MTV, as well as in commercials for Pinterest, Adobe, and American Express. Time Out NY says 'Hoy's music is fueled by straight up melodicism.' Red Red Wine on a Sunday says 'Greg's records are deep - like peeling layers off an onion - each song is a revelation!' Broken 8 says his work 'shines with a focused punk rock swagger.'
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