Press Quotes
“Dave Boutette has strummed his way into the ears – and hearts – of people in these parts for decades, playing his unique melodies and telling stories through his music as only he can – in an engaging, enlightening and always fun style that has served him well.”
— Sunday Feature : WeLoveDexter.com
— The Nor-East’r Music & Art Festival
“Dave Boutette fuses a sort of classic folk feel ala Woody Guthrie or early Dylan with kisses of modern alt folk edginess and a touch of crooner blues. The result is unique and refreshing, with music that lets you pay attention to the wonderful stories while experiencing them in subtly non traditional singer/songwriter fashions. You can also think of Tom Waits without the gruff voice. Songs like “Waltz For Smelt,” “Dime In Hand” and “New Parade” cast perspective on his talents. Music that is catchy, honest and enjoyable as well as being skillfully crafted.”
– Music Morsels
“With all the fun, it would be easy to miss that Boutette’s carefully distilled lyrics sparkle with a subtle, beautiful brilliance.”
– Ann Arbor Current
“He is the real deal”
– Michigan Folk Live
“A member of the legendary Junk Monkeys, Dave Boutette’s solo material rocks and rolls around in quieter pastures on the alt-country side of the fence. An accessible, folksy style permeates a substantial passel of impressive tunes-some soft and warm as the sun in the Midwestern sky, others bursting through the barn doors as anthemic, bar-slapping rockers all reflecting a wry, hearty sincerity.”
– MetroTimes, Detroit
“After years of playing with Detroit rock band the Junk Monkeys, Boutette has abandoned his Les Paul and gone acoustic. The results are effective – not affected – particularly in the lyrics. His subject matter ranges from barroom-style celebration to songs of loss – loss of time, even the loss of his band – rendered skillfully enough so as to be genuinely moving to the listener.”
– HOUR Detroit
“Boutette’s genial temperament and taste make each song durable, and he baits his hooks like a Zen trout fishing master.”
– Ann Arbor News
“Dave Boutette is an optimistic songwriter, charming and funny in an easy, casual way. He’s nostalgic, looking at the past and at times of transition with an eye for vivid detail.”
– Ann Arbor Observer
“With catchy melodies, an honest voice and carefully chosen lyrics that are as propelling as perfect oar strokes on glass-still water, Boutette’s music is riveting. This album is satisfying on every and any possible level.”
– Ann Arbor Current
REVIEWS
Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange
“From its cracked cabaret start to the Salvation Army march of its endearing title track, The Piccolo Heart exhibits a rare sense of musical and lyrical humor that is not only refreshingly original and most welcome, it is entirely infectious. Like Tom Waits without the early years of bourbon and the latter years of brimstone, Boutette’s crafty songs intermittently creep up or pounce on you. Either way, you’re along for a fun ride. A decidedly happy slop sink of styles, the Junk Monkey’s former guitarist ranges woozily from the above mentioned cabaret (Dime In Hand, Love Won’t Go Away (“So you’d better make room for it”), then waltzes blithely into Girl In Love (“Who swept the moon from the sky?”). Wilco whispers Brave Little Darling while a bowed bass wreaks havoc on the deceptively pretty First Snow of November. Throw in an inventive rendering of Stephen Foster’s Why No One to Love?’ and The Piccolo Heart becomes a true restorative in every sense of the word.”
– Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange
Ann Arbor News
“Confetti is destined to become one of those CDs I cite for proof when talking about the world-class talent with which Ann Arbor is blessed. Ann Arbor-area favorite Dave Boutette sings here in a folksy style that’s pure Midwestern – comfortable like a favorite easy chair.”
– Ann Arbor News
REVIEW: The Piccolo Heart – Il Popolo del Blues (Italian)
Nel continuo fermento artistico della scena musicale americana e nel suo continuo alternarsi di next big thing e replicanti di vecchie rock icone rock, ogni tanto fa capo qualche sopresa interessante ma pochissime volte accade di trovarsi di fronte a cantautori con reali possibilità di sfondare e molto spesso si tratta solo di lampi momentanei come accadde negl’anni novanta con Phil Cody con The Sons of Intemperance Offering. Di recente si fa un gran parlare di Dave Boutette, un giovane cantautore dalla grandi qualità, che da poco ha pubblicato The Piccolo Heart, un disco di pregevole fattura che mescola sperimentazione e ricerca sonora con un limpido songwriting. Boutette non è un pivellino, ma anzi ha una bella esperienza alle spalle prima con i Junk Monkeys, una punk rock band di Detroit poi come solista. I suoi tre album precedenti non hanno avuto grande risonanza ma ascoltandoli si ha la sensazione che il suo talento emerga progressivamente e se letto in questo senso The Piccolo Heart, è il suo disco della maturità presentando un vero e proprio salto di qualità rispetto al passato. All’ascolto si ha la sensazione di essere di fronte ad un cantautore, una spanna più in alto rispetto al più recente Ryan Adams e ben lontano dalla sua ripetitività, essendo questo disco assolutamente vario nei suoni e soprattutto nelle strutture musicali. Il disco si apre con un uno-due esaltante prima con la torrida Dime in Hand e poi con la piccola sinfonia sgangherata di Won’t Go Away che parte a ritmo di polka per poi diventare un blues sferragliante che richiama Highway 61 di Bob Dylan sirene comprese. Seguono ballate pregevoli come Iva, Girl In Love dove le chitarre incontrano il violoncello, e la splendida Waltz For Smelt che ricorda un po’ The Band e un po’ Tom Petty. Ciò che colpisce è comunque la cura sonora, ed in questo complice di Boutette è stato sia l’ottimo Adam Druckman alla produzione sia il sostegno di alcuni membri dei Great Lakes Myth Society, che suonano nelle varie tracce ed in particolare nella bellissima First Snow Of November, un brano quasi rumoristico che ci porta nei pressi del Tom Waits più sperimentale. Sul finale arrivano prima la fascinosa Walk Me Home Again e la rilettura Why No One to Love?, dal songbook di Stephen Foster, poi la sinuosa title track sostenuta dall’accordion di John Comfort, che suggella un disco quasi perfetto. Non ci sentiamo di usare la parola capolavoro ma senza dubbio The Piccolo Heart è un disco che lascerà il segno.
– Il Popolo del Blues
