A Reader’s Fresh Picks: Canada’s Hawking By Sam Taylor.
Hawking – Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
(Editor’s Note – Today’s Fresh Picks follows suit in showcasing new music outside of review requests and subscriptions, but also breaks the chain in that this feature was written by veteran Musically Fresh reader, Sam Taylor, who gives his thoughts on why YOU need to hear the infectious Indie Rock of Canada’s Hawking.
MS.)
Personally, I’ve been keeping an eye on the Vancouver scene for a while. As a huge fan of Indie Rock, bands like Half Moon Run have inspired me to delve into a seemingly saturated scene, full of great Indie Rock bands. The band that has caught my eye most, is Hawking.
Formed in the autumn of 2012, the BC-based quartet combine angular, almost Arcane Roots-esque guitar riffs with catchy vocals and liberating rhythms to create something that’s not wholly Indie, and not wholly Rock either. If you think “The 1975 covering TTNG”, you’ll probably get near what they’re aiming for.
Their self-titled EP was released late last year, and, being totally honest, I’ve had it on regular rotation since discovering it.
The lead single ‘Safe And Sound’ is certainly the most accessible track, leaning more towards the Indie end of their spectrum, but with some strong hints of heavier things to come. On a whole, the song wouldn’t be out of place on a Vampire Weekend album as one of the heavier tracks.
My personal favourite track follows this on the EP, ‘Cold Hands’ certainly brings in some more interesting guitar riffs, broken down over a recurring hook of ‘Save your breath, wrap your fingers around my neck’, followed by a Math-Rock oriented bridge, and a short tapping riff enough to melt even the hardest of faces.
This is followed by a barrage of three technical guitar-based songs, while still retaining their catchy, Indie-edged choruses. In a recent conversation with singer, Tom Vanderkam, they mentioned that they’ve ‘[…]only played ‘Diastole’ live once and swore we never would again, it went down really well, but it was like sitting a med school exam’.
The four-piece are known for being one of the hardest-touring independent bands in their area playing 60+ shows per year, and regularly sharing stages with mid-level bands like Foxing, Bend Sinister, and Gates.
Keep an eye out for new tours & new music to be announced over the coming months.
Find them below:
- For updates, head to their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram profiles.
- The band’s music can be streamed via Spotify and their Youtube Channel, with the latter including live videos.
- For digital downloads, the EP can be found on iTunes and bandcamp. Hard copies can also be found via their bandcamp page.
Sam Taylor.
#StayFresh
