Patrick Wolf

For quite a while, I've known that Patrick Wolf is amazing. I've been absolutely in love with his music for a good deal of time and for many reasons.

Firstly, he's a genius. In his first album Lycanthropy, all the songs were vaired and different. He didn't want to be pigeon-holed or pegged down to a certain style so he kept the listener on their feet, guessing what could possibly come next. He experimented with different sounds and styles and vocals. I loved it. I still do. One of my absoutely favorite songs of all time, "To the Lighthouse" inspiried my novel-in-progress immensely and I'll be forever in his debt (even if he doesn't know it).

Secondly, I can't stop listening! Because he's such a variable arist, I can listen to Patrick Wolf all the day long and never tire of him. His second album, Wind in the Wires, is probably his most song-to-song flowy album but I adore the style of every song on the disc. The Magic Position, his third album, is one of my favorites. He experiments with pseudo-dance pop and different moods and it's magical. I had mp3 copies of all his CDs and then bought them because they were so fantastic.

Thirdly, he can't mess up! I've watched many, many, many videos of him on Youtube that are live or music vidoes and his voice sounds exactly the same. He's flawless in every performance (until he gets drunk and forgets his own lyrics). Though vaguely Bowie-style eccentric, Patrick Wolf keeps faithful to his own music as well as his own sense of style. But musically, he is always perfect. I am amazed by the consistency of his voice. I've never heard any other arist who can sound the same from one performance to another, rain or shine (so to speak).

Here is an example of his vocal prowess:


And here is a live version, to contrast:

PS: He talks for about a minute in the beginning but he's entertaining. Also, he is wearing no shirt. Beware of nudity!