Released: 16 August 2024
Chosen By: Ben
Comments -
Dean: 3 very strong images impede and enhance my enjoyment. Boris Karloff in Frankenstein, The Cabinet of Doctor Calivari, and Spandau Ballet's To Cut A Long Story Short. I'm a little caught up in my feelings of those three and whilst I am a fan of gothic cinema, I'm an undecided fan of Spandau Ballet.
I find the lyrics a little too theatrical to enjoy with the pervasive conviction I find hard to relinquish, that accessibility is key. Perhaps not accessibility but a certain hook that speaks to a part of me that is recognisable. I found Spandau Ballet difficult for the same reason.
It's an interesting choice. Not sure how serious you are about this choice given your predeliction to choose untested musical offerings. I'm not disappointed but I am a little undernourished.It's ok.
Stu: HAMISH HAWK, from the moody cover to the lyrics and the delivery I agree on the HOMO EROTIC feel!! Are all these tracks about a single lover of his or multiple?? Some great lines in here!! I love the reference to SHOEGAZE!! Top marks though go to ‘there’s nothing he likes more than to watch me disappear inside him’.
His voice is engaging and I like the instrumentation. This record did engage me. Possibly a little long, I did start to loose interest towards the end. I’ve played it 4 times because I enjoyed it rather than 4 times to try and like it!! I can see some bondage, some talcum, discarded condoms, some scratches and some rimming!!! Very black and white, loving and loathing!
Good choice Ben, I can see why you are such a big fan 🪭 Interesting link with Spandau Ballet, that first LP was a red herring for future fans!! I love JOURNEYS TO GLORY, especially CONFUSED ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Ben: A Firmer Hand is HH’s third album. The previous two are very enjoyable, melodic, affairs but the new album has a much harder edge and is making a big statement about his homosexuality (which I wasnt previously aware of). Having said that the first track carries on in the same melodic vein as the previous albums - ‘havent you heard I smother the chances I get’ providing a nice earworm. Machiavelli’s room is where the new style and message kicks in - a massive contrast from the opening number and it took me a while to appreciate but I think Im there now. The rest of the album stays within the extremes of the first two tracks but the enjoyment does seem to tail off over the last two songs. I guess my faves are big cat tattoos and men like wire. I enjoy his talent for putting together theatrical lines and imagery, the melodies are great and the record is easy to listen to, all of which is in my wheelhouse. It’s not quite a star because of the way the album peters out but I like it a lot.
Paul: This is my first encounter with Hamish Hawk and I've enjoyed it. I'm going to agree with a lot of what's already been said. He has a great voice, there's some clever wordplay throughout and there's a good variation of tunes on the album. I certainly get the 80s references although I was more with Heaven 17, some of Marc Almond's solo work and the phrasing of a couple of the songs sound very like the way Morrissey would deliver the lines. Big Cat Tattoos is also my pick of the record with an honourable mention to You Can Film Me but, like Ben, it falls just short of a star for me.
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