With a name like Hear Hums, the musical brainchild of young Floridian Mitchell Myers could be minimalist ambient drones. It isn’t. The music grooves, rocks, entices, surprises, quips, and howls. I listened to four tracks from Hear Hums’ self-released debut album Notions Shift at Tryptamine Bay and I wanted to hear more. Myers’ tunes are chock full of interesting sounds, lyrics, and real instrumental skill.
The first track was called “Collocational Time Systems.” Although it first hinted at a kind of unstructured noise music I didn’t want to hear, the flutter of animal imitations (Frog? Bird?) and other sounds quickly organized into a groove. It was a bit harsh, but also melodic, and the laid back flow was undeniable. It quickly became a thick, jarring mix of natural instruments and processed drums, competing but riding the same groove. The track pushed along with steady organic growth and one steep dip into quiet musing. It was sometimes messy as it evolved, but it was never dull or repetitive. The mystery animal impressions returned to cap off the song as the mix unwound. I enjoyed the track but I found the vocals distracting. Myers’ voice seemed too unprocessed and floated above the other sounds like an oil slick. His singing more than hinted at the influence of Death Cab for Cutie, which wasn’t a plus for me. Apart from the vocals the song was cool.
The second track “Monday or Any Day” featured even more vocals right off the bat. Despite some very cool effects processing and engagingly surreal lyrics, the vocals didn’t seem well executed to me. They were an awkward hybrid between artful singing and the sort of flagrantly untrained, mocking vocals that work well in other contexts. It’s a shame, too, because the rest of the track was so well done. It was a well-mixed groove of percussion instruments and melodic sounds that I really liked. Some very cool acoustic guitar riffs held the instrumentals together. They were awesome winding, hypnotic, melodic loops. Myers kept the music absorbing with odd-timed rhythmic flourishes and a good story. The song developed in an arc shape with a few dips and pops to keep it exciting. This track could easily have been longer and more developed and I was sorry to hear it end so quickly.
Next up was a laid-back tune called “Slow Drifters”. It featured plain, warm-toned electric guitar that reminded me of Radiohead’s more airy songs. This moody, yet down-to-earth track showed Mitchell Myers’ excellent songwriting skills. It was basically a good, solid rock song by a traditional rock band lineup, only filtered through an experimental sensibility. Instead of a verse-chorus-verse formula, Myers built the momentum organically as the tune fell and climbed in artful waves.
The last track I listened to was called “On the Road to Consciousness Carnival”. It was a dark carnival style song, maybe a nod to “Alabama Song” as played by The Doors. As in “Slow Drifters,” natural instruments made most of the sound. Acoustic guitar was out front from the start and a well-played organ reinforced the carnival mood. Several short breakdowns let Myers show off his intelligent guitar skills. They were short and sweet acoustic guitar solos that fit perfectly. The tune peaked when a wildly distorted guitar blasted onto the track. The vocals worked much better in this song. Myers sang the dark, melodic, intellectual carnival tune in a playfully eerie unison, at times boisterous and mumbling.
These four tracks by Hear Hums had plenty of width and depth. Judging by these, the Hear Hums debut album Notions Shift at Tryptamine Bay boasts excellent songwriting, instrumental work, and clever production. I’d love to see a live performance and check out the visual experiments Mitchell Myers says he adds to the mix. I certainly hope to hear more interesting Hear Hums grooves in the future. With the amount of creative juices flowing on these tracks, I don’t have any doubt I will.
Nathaniel Rolnick – MuzikReviews.com Contributor
September 30, 2009
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