Saturday 22 May 2010

THE HILLMISTERS/(((OH DEAR – SPLIT 12 INCH (CULTURE AS A DARE)


THE HILLMISTERS/(((OH DEAR – SPLIT 12 INCH (CULTURE AS A DARE)

The second release from Culture As A Dare hailing out of Southend is an exciting one, a split twelve inch featuring three tracks a piece from two exceptional US indie influenced outfits.

Listening to the music of The Hillmisters is a joy, a genuine and stunning breeze as their sound encapsulates a wonderful time in my musical education.  They operate within a great manner that sees their sound pleasingly hang in the air prior to bombing proceedings in a most satisfying fashion.  At this risk of tarring the band with an overused brush they sound like a triumphant hybrid of Pavement and the Flaming Lips in full flow.  The gargled vocals appear to be spewing out the kind of lyrics that emerge from a bitter crossword capturing the sights and sounds of a moment in time that is about to turn nasty.  All in all it reminds me of going through a tunnel of love.  Then they offer up a song entitled “Jeanie”, almost as if they were mocking me.  The bust is that good.

(((Oh Dear are not quite as an awkward proposition as the spelling of their name might suggest.  With a singer that sounds like Lou Barlow there is a natural leaning towards brimming/beaming like Sebadoh.  As the pace droops and female vocals drop in for backup the band begin to remind me of the finer moments of The Delgados on their second track “Raise The Bar” before things eventually run out in a Crazy Horse manner with “Last Friend” as a lazy blues number gets interrupted by a side order of noodles.  Given time and exposure people could easily fall in love with this.

Thesaurus moment: exhibit.

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