Stranger in Town: Ontario Singer-Songwriter Hayden

TALK FOR A WHILE to Ontario singer-songwriter Hayden, and you realize his quiet act isn't really an act at all. The indie cult hero is just as low-key in conversation as he is in song. Several times during our interview, the hum of the international telephone line threatened to drown his voice out entirely.

His mellow vibe is probably one reason Hayden (aka Paul Hayden Dresser) is the type of musician beloved by listeners of National Public Radio's World Cafe (on which he appeared Sept. 10) and ignored by everyone else. Well, there's that and the fact that he operates according to his own rules, releasing records when the spirit moves him.

Since his 1995 four-track debut CD, he's released only four full CDs of music. Even his MySpace page refers to his cycle of recording and touring but also boasts of his taking "lots of time off." He released his newest CD, "In Field & Town," on his own Hardwood label in Canada. Don't expect him to hop aboard the record-company treadmill anytime soon.

"I find that I work outside of the industry as a whole," he explains. "But, basically, taking my show on the road and releasing a record is my way of getting back on the machine of semi-self-promotion. I do have to gear up for that. And it's such a different process from the insular writing and recording phase that it takes some deep breaths before I can switch gears."

Although Hayden was compared to Beck early in his career and has also drawn comparisons to fellow Canadians Neil Young and Leonard Cohen, one listen to his new CD shows that he's pretty much evolved into being his own man. A good example of his music is the gorgeous ballad "More Than Alive." It's at once personal but elusive, triumphant yet saddening. You can credit his mix-and-match compositional method for that.

"I enjoy taking the seed of something that's really meaningful and emotional to me [but blending it with] creative writing and adding things here and there," he notes. "So it's really an amalgamation."

» Jammin' Java, 227 Maple Ave. E., Vienna; with Jennifer O'Connor, Sun., 8 p.m., $14; 703-255-1566.

Written by Express contributor Tony Sclafani
Photo courtesy Canvas Media