I Love 'I Hate'

This is an unusual post for me because, well, I've never been a huge music lover.  Sure, I love to sing and bop with the best of them but if you asked me about a band or singer or song name I couldn't tell you to save myself.  Seriously.  But, for many reasons, this guy is different.  I love, love, love him and that makes me want to shout it from the rooftops. 

So, without further ado, I would like to introduce you to Passenger, as he sings "I Hate" live from the Borderline in London.  (Thanks YouTube)
 



The brainchild of 26-year-old Brighton born singer/songwriter Mike Rosenberg, Passenger is redefining the troubadour for the 21st century. Formerly a five-piece band, Passenger has now pared back to basics, quite literally bringing music to the streets on a series of lengthy busking journeys across Australia, America and the United Kingdom. A classic journeyman musician, cut from the same mould as Van Morrison, Neil Young and John Prine, Passenger has the unique ability to move from the humorous to heartbreaking with every song (excerpt from the Passenger Facebook page).

The first time I saw (indeed, even heard of) Passenger was earlier this year when he was the support act at an Angus & Julia Stone concert in the Perth hills.  From his very first song both Mr C and I were blown away by his talent, lyrics, sense of fun and, well, whole performance.  It was such an amazing gig (made even better by being nestled amongst the trees with the Perth city skyline in the background) that right then and there I jumped onto his website and booked tickets to his next gig in Fremantle.  No joke - right then and there.  AND... I will not hesitate in saying that he completely and utterly up-staged the main act of the evening.  Yep, that good.

Of course, I now have two of his albums and I play them ALL THE TIME.  It drives Mr C mad as he has a vast collection of music yet I always pick the same thing.  I'm pretty sure even the neighbours know all the lyrics by now.  That's how much I love this guy.

So, in the interests of bettering the world and making people smile, here I am spreading the word.  I hope you like Passenger as much as I do.

For more information on Passenger and/or his current tour in Australia, check out the website.

E.