Anyone who listens to the new album "Segovia At The Wheel" (release date: 08.08.2025) by Belgian artist Roland Van Campenhout from the very beginning will feel like the "hobo" sung about in the opening song. The rails rattle beneath us in a monotonous, even rhythm, the most varied landscapes pass by cosy and regularly, day turns into night and then day again. Right in the middle of it all is the lonely, homeless, permanent traveler, without a destination, but with the firm intention of being "on the road" and shaping his strange existence in this way.
Roland Van Campenhout, the "eternal hobo", turns 81 on July 25th. The very first notes of the 12-song Calaidoscope "Segovia At The Wheels" immerse the listener in the enchanted atmosphere of its creator. The Belgian master guitarist and singer creates an atmosphere of sound that is as frugal as it is mysterious, not unlike Ry Cooder's soundtrack of the century for the Wim Wenders film "Paris, Texas". But it also evokes associations with Captain Beefheart, the master songwriter Tom Waits and the shaman Dr. John.
With "Segovia At The Wheel", however, the charismatic musician is back to himself and on his own mission. And even if the current songs come from a "non-existent country" - the trip to this imaginary world is definitely worth it. "There's a lot of humor in each of the new tracks," laughs Van Campenhout. "On the other hand, the album also describes the story of my musical development. Because I originally come from jazz. And of course from folk sounds à la Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie or Joni Mitchell. On the other hand, I've been traveling all over the planet for decades. I meet tons of people, make friends, make music together with this or that person. So it's inevitable that my sound changes again and again. It would be a terribly boring thing if I stayed stuck to one sound. I'm not interested in creative stagnation."
Track Listing
Seldom Seen Slim (Only A Hobo) My Fear Back Home To You I'm Just A Lucky So And So Camel Funk Seven String Banjo The Book Of Changes Raga In Rage Entschuldigung Buddha Box On Parade Segovia At The Wheel Interlude
