Twin Cities musician proves his authenticity with songwriting, style

John Ziegler, Duluth News Tribune - Thursday, July 24, 2008

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I first heard Brent Floren on the most recent Beaner’s Central “One Week Live” compilation. His contribution “Jukebox” was the highlight of those 18 tracks with its attitude, wit and soulful delivery. It signaled a songwriter with vision, solid musical sensibilities and maturity.

Floren’s latest release “High Horse” proves that the single track was no fluke. This full project is a good batch of songs disparate in their subject matter, melodic development and production while still being cohesive.

Combining some of the best elements of several of today’s foremost singer-songwriters, Floren seems to have a natural sound not unlike Lyle Lovett, with a distinct similarity in timbre and phrasing. He has Greg Brown’s eye for interesting detail, Guy Clark’s penchant for exploring simple topics and Joe Henry’s production values. It’s an impressive set of skills, and “High Horse” reverberates with quality in all areas.

“I Should Have Known Better” is a look at the regret we all feel when we say something in anger to a loved one and how we have to live with the fallout and the pain. This character is in a car with his partner “…I start out with a point, just a few things to say, and it turns into the worst part of me.” It’s written in a bare-bones style. It paints with few colors, giving you the stick-figure rendition, not the Monet. It’s actually much more powerful and effective than overwhelming the listener with too much information. The best songwriters have that way of giving just enough detail to hold you, while allowing you to fill in the shades and hues that you see in your own personal video of the song.

“I Don’t Mean To Be Rude” is a flat-out, no-holds-barred song about the dissolution of any personal involvement with a friend. Floren tells this person “I’m not usually so honest, I’m not typically so concise, but if we never met again I’d have to say that’d be nice.” There’s a Midwestern style of communication afoot here, where Floren is trying to soften the blow but still get the message straight.

A swing jazz feel to “Tinderbox” speaks to the old truism that, in a relationship, it’s often the little things (one-liners, put-downs, irritating habits) that build up and sink the ship of happiness. Floren has a knack of looking at the small moments in life and consistently finding the humor and the seriousness.

Floren comes from the St. Paul suburb of New Brighton, Minn. He worked on a farm growing up and went to bed listening to his grandmother play spirituals on the accordion. He played in the Minnesota bands Ghost Train and Shake Oliver; spent time listening to jazz guitar greats Django Reinhardt, Charlie Chrsitian and George Benson; and his writing was inspiration by Bruce Springsteen’s “Nebraska.”

He’s absorbed diverse influences and come out with a style that is his own, while showing the edges of some of those inspirational artists. The disc was mixed and mastered by Hans Buff, who has worked with Prince, Son Volt, the American Music Club and Soul Asylum. He and Floren met while students and Buff took an interest in Floren’s work. The result is a winning combination of talented individuals focused on producing a solid project.

“This Old Town” is about a life stuck in a rotting, decaying old town that some people get bogged down in “if you stay too long, you’ll end up ham-strung and tied.” It’s a metaphor for the struggle that many of us have with major life changes.

“Sundogs” is an old man looking ahead to the after-life where he will “run with the sundogs” and be reunited with his long-departed wife who “left here so long ago, but I hear her calling.” It’s a loving tribute to his grandparents who have a special place in his heart.

Floren is an outstanding new voice on the upper Midwest singer-songwriter circuit. Give this one a listen and it will cause you to scratch your head and say “why haven’t I heard of this guy before?”