“Trust” was one of our favorite tracks/vids of the summer, and now Gravenhurst follow that cut’s drifting, shoegazer melancholia with something more urgent on “Hollow Men,” the second single from the forthcoming The Western Lands. In “Hollow Men,” Nick Talbot and the boys are cast in film-y b&w interspersed with a a landfill, war machines, grinning video game scarecrows, political sloganeering, all sorts of weaponry, and a lil’ birdy giving that knowing sideways stare. Ah, nature, you’re so wise! The track’s occasional noise bursts go well with the morning coffee, and even if there wasn’t that burning scarecrow, the feedback bursts would still make us think of Sonic Youths’ use of dusky, melancholic distortion on Bad Moon Rising. The rest? Much like you’d expect from a thoughtful four-eyed British pop-shoegazer referencing a death, apocalypse (and, yup, scarecrow) filled T.S. Eliot. poem, though this tune definitely ends with a bang — actually, an explosion, or two — not a whimper.
The Western Lands is out 9/10 in the UK and 9/18 in the US via Warp.
 |
 |
this album is totally solid. i dont love this song as much as i LOVE trust, but there are totally some other great tunes on the album
“hourglass” and “the collector” are both perfect. it’s really a great album.
definitely. those two are beautiful. and i love “saints” as well. more love!
I really enjoy this video, I really don’t like the song.
How have I not heard this band before? I like their sound. The video is incredible.
Hmmm. It’s good, though.
In this song, the vocalist sounds quite a bit like Morrissey to me
That video is amazing. And yes, Trust is one of the best songs i’ve heard all year.