Start Listening To: Hooper Crescent
The Melbourne based band channel B52s and Devo, exploring an area of post-punk which is often overlooked.
As veterans of Melbourne's music and community radio scenes for over a decade, Hooper Crescent's journey is intertwined with the rich tapestry of the city's cultural fabric. Their new album Essential Tremors, is rooted in the realms of art rock and post-punk. From discussing their influences to addressing the challenges facing independent artists in the age of big tech dominance, Hooper Crescent provides a candid look into their creative process and aspirations for the future.
For those unfamiliar with your music, can you tell us who you are, where you’re from and about the music you make?
We are a five piece band from Naarm/Melbourne, Australia making music under the "art rock" or "post-punk" umbrella for lack of a better descriptor. We've all been involved in music and community radio in Melbourne for the last decade or so, and our band is very much based on the friendships we have formed in those spaces first and foremost. The aim is for our music to be a byproduct of those friendships, hopefully resulting in a genuine creative chemistry that results in something new within our own music scene.
Can you tell us more about the inspiration behind your new single ‘Wrong Direction’ and how it fits into the overall theme of your upcoming album Essential Tremors?
Wrong Direction initially started out as an experiment in using repetition of rhythm and vocal phrasing in a similar way to how Stereolab would lock into a groove and add layers on top. The song grew from there, and through Gemma Helms' unconventionally funky bass line that emerged from our jams, the song took more of a playful new wave direction. Vocally, we decided to adopt a dual delivery inspired by bands like Devo and B-52s, and I think the song ended up having a really satisfying blend of all of those influences, and landed somewhere we weren't expecting.
How would you describe the evolution of your sound from your debut album Object Permanence to your upcoming release Essential Tremors?
We definitely made a conscious decision to experiment more with synths and drum machines, and to move away from being a typically "guitar" band. Guitars play a huge part in our songwriting process, so will always have a presence in our songs, but we wanted to relinquish any genre or instrument constraints we might have unconsciously imposed on the songwriting of the first record.
What role did producer John Lee play in shaping the sound and direction of your new album?
John was integral in helping us realize some of the ideas we had on paper that we didn't really have the experience of putting into action. John is a real synth/tone wizard, and helped us seamlessly incorporate interesting synth textures and instrument effects into our raw instruments, that really brought out some of the eccentricities and embellishments that you hear throughout the record. Without John's input, I don't think we could have evolved our sound in the way you hear across the two records.
Can you walk us through your songwriting process for Essential Tremors?
Usually we write songs based on demos and song ideas that I bring to the band. There is quite a bit of vetting that happens before those demos are shown to the band. Everyone else writes their own parts on top of those foundations, and we refine the songs to fit into the broader sonic identity of the band. Having quite a strict vetting process for what ends up becoming a Hooper Crescent song hopefully allows for an identifiable throughline that runs through each song, even when we are experimenting with genres and styles. Sometimes it's not even something you can describe, more of an intangible feeling of whether a song is right or not for this project.
How do you feel your experiences recording Essential Tremors differed from your previous recording sessions, especially considering the shift to a more polished studio environment?
Recording "Essential Tremors" was the first time we recorded "track by track" in the studio, which really tested the technical ability of the group. Historically, we've been quite committed to a DIY approach to songwriting and recording, so to have that level of discipline imposed on us by John in the studio allowed us to really focus on getting the songs right, and ultimately making us tighter as a band. There has always been a fear that working in a more polished studio environment might mean that we lose some of the rawness at the heart of the band, but John Lee really strikes a perfect balance of creating a DIY atmosphere in his studio, while also employing the bells and whistles of a high end studio.
What do you hope listeners take away from the album Essential Tremors after experiencing it in its entirety?
Hopefully people feel like they are being presented with some familiar sounds being presented in some new contexts. You never quite know how something is going to be received, but we definitely set out to challenge ourselves to try and write some music outside of our comfort zone, and to not rely on formulas we've used before, so hopefully that comes across in some way when listening to the album.
Could you discuss the significance of the album title Essential Tremors?
It's a title that has multiple meanings, and hopefully evokes some other things in others too. Benign Essential Tremors is a genetic nervous system condition that runs in my family that causes involuntary and rhythmic shaking. On one level the title is about coming to terms with that condition and realising that there are things that are passed down to us through our family lineage, that we may not welcome, but end up becoming a fundamental part of who we are. We also liked the idea of describing our songs as "tremors", which I think fits into the kinetic energy that runs through some of our songs. It is also a tongue in cheek reference to those "Essential" compilations that much bigger bands would release in the CD era, and the absurdity of referring to your own music as "essential".
What do you love right now?
Artists we love that are currently influencing the band are Mope Grooves, Jessica Pratt, Prefab Sprout, Kosmetika, Brion Gysin, Betty Davis to name but a drop in the ocean of influences.
What do you hate right now?
The insidious way big tech has infiltrated every aspect of the music industry and bled it dry, leaving independent artists, journalists, labels and publications without the infrastructure to have sustainable careers.
Name an album you’re still listening to from when you were younger and why it’s still important to you?
Yo La Tengo's "I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One" will forever be an inspiration for the band. Even though we have quite a different sound to YLT, the light and shade they execute on this album will always be an influence. The way in which they incorporate experimental guitar freak outs/jams with bittersweet melodies and tender songwriting is a masterclass in blending opposing musical ideas to create something new and interesting.
What's next for Hooper Crescent after the release of Essential Tremors? Do you have any plans for touring?
We've got an Australian tour planned for this year, and if there is enough demand for it, we'd love to come to the US and Europe too! Other than that, working on album number 3, which hopefully will sound completely different to this record!
