Metro Pulse/Music/Joe Davenport

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Joe Davenport's painful passion mixes with hardcore sensibility

by John Sewell

On a surface level, Joe Davenport (AKA Xyour secret admirerX) is yet another sensitive emo singer/songwriter. He's got the look, the sound, this week's cool influences, local indie credibility, and the ever important emotional baggage to follow along in the wake of Bright Eyes as Knoxville's foremost troubadour of teenage angst. And the name Xyour secret admirerX simultaneously connotes sensitivity and the post punk, DIY ethos. The kid's already conquered the local hardcore/emo scene (such as it is) so he's next up for big success as an indie pop crossover artist, right?

Well, success might well be in the cards for the diminutive, soft-spoken 20-year-old. But Davenport has plenty of issues standing in his way, most notably his personal life and lack of ambition.

"I started Xyour secret admirerX because I couldn't be in a band," says Davenport. "I was so wrapped up in going out with girls that I didn't have time. I would always be the guy that didn't show up for practice because I'd be with my girlfriend."

Though Davenport is now also in a band (hardcore up-and-comers Rise From Ruin), he finds that playing solo fits his lifestyle. "It's a lot easier playing alone because I don't have to haul a bunch of equipment," he says. "I just bring my guitar and play. I don't even have to have microphones."

Sonically, Xyour secret admirerX is acoustic pop with lots of hardcore and emo influences. Davenport's strong songwriting skills allow him to present bare bones renditions that don't sound lacking. Yet it is easy to imagine the songs accompanied by a full band. The basic component is songwriting, and quality comes through no matter what the presentation. Imagine an acoustic version of Angel Hair, Mineral, or even The Get Up Kids, and you'll be somewhere near Davenport's musical orbit.

His lyrics deal with the travails of adolescent romance: relationships that almost invariably fail. For the most part, his songs reflect vulnerability and the disillusionment that comes with looming adulthood. A performance by Xyour secret admirerX is a generally low-key affair. But once you've allowed Davenport to lull you with his tales of woe, the vitriol begins to seep in.

At all of Davenport's recent area concerts, the mostly quiet set is climaxed with a cathartic little tune called "I Hope You F—-ing Die For What You Did To Me." Not exactly a subtle piece, the title says it all. The song is like open heart surgery with no anesthesia. It's as if the usually cherubic Davenport spiritually disembowels himself for the edification and prurient interest of his hardcore audience, all the while ruining his image as a melancholy, shoe-gazing type. And he means it, too.

"There's actually a touch of humor to that song," Davenport says. "It's very personal—like, 'Ha ha, you might have hurt my feelings or cheated on me, but I'm getting you back and this is my song about you.' And I always dedicate the song to them.

"I think most people's reaction when they get their feelings hurt is to wish that the person that hurt them was dead. It's not just girls, there are plenty of guys that I hate too.

"I have songs about all kinds of things, but 90 percent of them are about love and relationships," says Davenport. "That's what always comes to me first because it's important. It's not like I'm in turmoil or anything. Not now, at least."

So whether or not Davenport's homicidal fantasies compose the bulk of his work, those songs are what audiences remember most. The tunes of Xyour secret admirerX reveal the terrifying dichotomy romance, where love turns to hate in a fraction of a second. Beware of the seemingly innocent and vulnerable types, because they might just turn out to be the most vicious.

"When my ex-girlfriend and I broke up after three years and I wrote the song about her with all the screaming and stuff—her new boyfriend came to my show," says Davenport. "And it was one of those things where I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to use my playing to its full potential. It was like, 'That kid, yea you, I am so sorry for you because you have to put up with this girl that I put up with for three years.' I think he might have been slightly disturbed when I started screaming I hope you f—-ing die, I'll never forgive you, I hate your guts in front of 50 people. I wasn't like pointing my finger at him or anything but I'm 100 percent sure that he knew that the song was about her.

"I was really nervous that night. But it was one of those things where when you go out with someone for so long and you get dumped or you have to break up with them—and, next thing you know they're going out with this total dork. It's like every time I get dumped, it's always for the worst guys, the biggest nerds. I'm not saying that I'm not a nerd because I don't think that I'm that special. But my ex-girlfriends always seem to go out with someone that we had both made fun of for years. And I'm like what? I don't see this! You dumped me for him?"