We first wrote about H*ckhound from New York’s Dicktations last January, an album which came with it’s own explanation of grief and mourning and the unyielding pressure of expectation:
“H*ckhound plays like the anxious survivor of some tragedy, troubled but sincere, full of love to give and lose and so desperate to prove it he drags you along by the arm and pleads into your ear in a constant flow”
Now the band are back with a new EP, Words Don’t Love You. After the variation in style across H*ckhound, this release sees the band settle into a groove, peddling a laidback punk rock something like The Strokes playing in your garage. Opener ‘Action Park’ is a perfect example, a jangly summer tune for nostalgic slackers:
“If there was one thing you could never stand about summertime,
it was sitting on your couch with nothing on your mind.
I only wish I could hate those moments half as much as you
but then again, I guess, I got nothing better to do”
[bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=1909258608 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false artwork=small track=3482414796]
‘Boys’ follows a similar vein, making vague statements with a drunken clarity to no-one in particular, while ‘New Jersey Girls’ skirts with a surfy vibe, the gruff, disinterested vocals blurring what is meant and what is not, the sheen of irony a safety net for the emotional gymnastics on show. ‘(When Were You) Dreamin’ is reflective warm evening hit, a streak of defiance and goodwill defeating worry, and ‘Pox’ sees a continuation of this feeling. A mix of bedroom pop and garage rock with a tropical shimmer, the closer is the stand out track, the vocals finding the perfect blend of understatement and intensity, the song building across it’s runtime with notable force.
“When you walked away,
you slipped through the cracks.
Who’s left to tell you to come back?
I drove to our place.
I looked for the signs:
the arrangement of things
that you left behind.And we walk and talk for hours.
And we walk and talk for hours.
And we walk and talk for hours.
Then say that’s all we really need.
That’s all we really have to offer”
[bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=1909258608 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false artwork=small track=2689644023]
You can buy Words Don’t Love You now from the Dicktations Bandcamp page.