Hookworms are about to burrow into your tiny little minds with a psych overload in their second studio album The Hum, and with their single On Leaving we get a preview of what to expect, so here’s our review of the track, along with a stream of the music video below so you can decide for yourself too. Named after a parasitic nematode that lives in the small intestine of mammals (including humans) the Leeds based band have clearly embraced the slightly bizarre, but when it comes to their music the key factor is psych rock experimentation.
It’s a big part of On Leaving, which will be getting its official release on the 10th November 2014 on Weird World records, and it’s a genuine credit to the band’s apparent dedication to new wave psychedelia. As you can probably tell, we’re big fans of the sub genre, so you can expect a fairly positive review, but that shouldn’t take anything away from what the band has achieved with their upcoming new material.
If you took Wooden Shjips’ West and smashed it into vocals from early Shaun Ryder you probably wouldn’t be a million miles away from the impressive result that’s been been delivered on Hookworms third ever single. Listening to the first few bars of the track, with its trippy organ, garage rock drums and cyclical rhythm guitar, you could easily be fooled into thinking that it had to come from some kind of New York/California-based hybrid, but instead it’s the work of five guys from Leeds and Halifax, called JN, JW, MB, MJ and SS.
Described by their record label as building on the blueprint of their debut album, Pearl Mystic’s proto-punk, garage rock, Washington DC hardcore and 80’s British spacerock sound, On Leaving is an evolution of Hookworms’ previous work. However, it firmly stamps it with the band’s evolving progression and experimentation as layers of sonic complexity build throughout the track.
While bassist MB calls it their attempt at a “minimal two-note rager”, the reality is that there’s a lot more to the track than simple drive and well channelled power. There’s inevitably a lot of cyclical reiteration to the six minute track as thumping drums, guitar and keys rotate and repeat around each other, but with the addition of subtle variations to the central riff, along with call and response melodies from keyboardist and producer MJ, the single takes a few twists and turns before it brings things to a feedback soaked close.
The strength of On Leaving is a pretty good sign that their upcoming full record The Hum will be worth a few listens in the very least when it’s released alongside the single on the 10th November 2014 on vinyl, CD and digital download. If you’re as impressed with the single as us, you’ll be able to see the band live during their tour to coincide with the album release. See full details for all of their 2014 tour dates below.
Hookworms, On Leaving single review: 4/5
Hookworms 2014 tour dates:
Saturday 25th October 2014 – Birmingham, All Year’s Leaving Festival, Hare & Hounds
Sunday 26th October – Sheffield, Queen’s Social Club
Monday 27th October 2014 – Liverpool, Liverpool Music Week, Kazimier
Tuesday 28th October 2014 – London, Tufnell Park Dome
Wednesday 29th October 2014 – Cardiff, Clwb Ifor Bach
Thursday 30th October 2014 – Bristol, Start The Bus
Friday 31st October 2014 – Newcastle, Cluny 2
Saturday 1st November 2014 – Glasgow, Simple Things Festival
Wednesday 19th November 2014 – Leeds, Brudenell Social Club (album launch party)
