Rock/Pop - "I'm hollow and haggard," sings Chicago-to-Nashville transplant Michael McDermott on his latest album Hey La Hey (August 11) and after years of battling his own addictions and "life in the gutter" you believe every word. A rising young rocker in the early 90's whose gritty, personal rock songs and worn vocal chords drew comparisons to a young Springsteen, McDermott's crash and burn story of drugs, endless nights and self-destruction led him to the brink of his career -- and his life. "Sometimes you just have to find your bottom," he observes.

Salvation for McDermott came from finding the right partner - his new wife - and sheer, gut level determination, a hopeful quality that seeps in here and there among the new songs on Hey La Hey. There are, of course, the tracks such as "The Year It All Went Wrong" and "Hard To Break", songs that you can practically feel the pain of his own tragic, ongoing battles. But there are also songs like "I Wanna Know Why" that speak of life and redemption, of finding salvation - somewhere, anywhere - and finding the strength to wake up and face every day. It's not only a fascinating, all-too-human tale...it's also music that deserves to be heard.

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Photo: Niva Bringas