Hayden — Live At Convocation Hall

Hayden’s first live disc can best be described as "acoustic romance songs." Sounds fitting for him, doesn’t it? It’s intense without being overbearing, serious at times and funny at others  — a perfect balance. Recorded at U of T’s Convocation Hall on March 9 of this year, the setlist selection is wise, with a good combination of slower tracks like "Bad As They Seem" and "Between Us To Hold" mixed in with more upbeat ones like "Trees Lounge" and "Carried Away." Also, Hayden’s turn at Neil Young’s "Tell Me Why" is well done. Though he mainly performs solo on this album, he does get some help from Julie Doiron, Howie Beck, Sarah Slean and a string and horn section on some tracks. Well-versed and melodic, it was definitely a good decision on Mr. Desser’s part to release something live for a change.