Charlton Hill's in Too Deep, and Loving Every Minute of It
(Revolver Magazine, March '03)

it's been a strange ride for charlton hill. freshly returned from a long overseas adventure, hill was promptly signed up by sony subsidiary label murmur and sent back to the uk to record an album. the finished product then sat on the shelves for over a year as hill set about building up a support base in an environment which traditionally scorns the acoustic balladeer. a series of intimate acoustic gigs followed, often at venues far removed from the radar of many local punters. then came the first single, two's company, an infectiously snappy slice of pop possesssed of a killer intro hook and an assured production which showcased hill's calm but powerful voice. soon it was all over the airwaves; and television. heck, i even heard it whilst shopping in coles.

as hill's fame increased, so too did the quality of the supports he did. for a while there, it seemed that every touring international act which featured an acoustic guitar somewhere in the mix would have to compete for audience adoration with the prodigious opening act. one gig in particular, at sydney's charming basement venue, had hill supporting new zealand songstress bic runga and practically upstaging her, his melodic pop sensibilities perfectly complemented by the haunting bass notes of an accompanying cellist.

but then, just as his star was rising, hill seemed to disappear from view. little was heard of him for several months. the album release date was pushed back amidst whispers circulating about the depth of the material. an acoustic ep had whetted the appetite, hinting at the potential of the rest of the album. but in its bare form, it was difficult to get a firm grasp on its commercial viability. added to this was the realisation that the majority of hill's gigs to the point had been with only another guitarist to fatten the sound. many were wondering if the lad could really rock it out.

fast forward to just a few weeks back. promo copies of hill's debut album, waterline are sent out to various media outlets. all of a sudden, the whole major label lionizing of charlton hill starts to make a little sense. waterline is a remarkably assured and impressively succinct debut album, revealing not only a gift for arrangement but also a finely tuned ear for the dynamics and intricacies of production. for hill, the year-long hiatus between recording and release has been well worth the wait - "i don't listen to it a lot", he says. "but when i do, it's always a pleasant surprise" - thought for many it has only served to deepen the intrigue.

the story behind the album's genesis has been well documented over the past few months. in short, hill jammed most of the songs out initially in a house full of musicians during an extended stay in london. when he was sent back to the uk to record the album, rather than hook up with some of the fine session talent available, hill went back to that initial well of inspiration as a means of keeping the feel and thanking them for their earlier support and musical input. this meant that the final product remained pretty true to the original demos, something that hill was particularly insistent upon. "i could hear the songs in my head in their entirety," he says. "so really it was just a case of capturing that sound in the studio environment".

not surprisingly, given the album title and its jet setting history, two important threads in hill's creative outlook remain travelling and the water, or more pointedly, his immeidate proximity to it. exploring the world is an important priority for hill, regardless of the impact that such wanderlust has on his lifestyle and that of those around him. "people are always telling me that i don't have to be so disruptive", he says. "but i really feel the need to always keep moving. i think it's something that will be in my blood all my life". similarly, hill has an affection for the water that transcends even that of most northern beaches locals. it permeates his album, with constant references to its therapeutic (and occassionally troublesome) qualities.

to be able to indulge a passion for music, travelling and the ocean would seem to be the ideal of many. hill's living the dream. and, given the strength of the album behind him, it will be his reality for many years to come.

waterline is out through murmur/sony music on march 17. the second single deep is out now.

- zolton zavos

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