GENRE | WEIRDER THAN TAME IMPALA
VERDICT | THAT’S A GOOD THING
LABEL | MODULAR RECORDS
RELEASE | 8.6.13
Let’s get this out of the way: yes, Tame Impala and Pond share several band members.
They’re far from the same band, though. While Tame mastermind Kevin Parker continues to ponder why people won’t talk to him, his mates from Pond seem far more interested in kicking ass. And that’s exactly what Hobo Rocket does.
It totally, unrelentingly kicks ass.
Pond’s gritty psychedelic sound is on full display here. “Aloneaflameaflower” has a heavy, Sabbath-meets-White Stripes vibe. “Hobo Rocket” features an elderly mystic dude mumbling about drugs and outer space. And the riff on “Giant Tortoise” will punch you all the way back into 1975.
Hobo Rocket isn’t going to spawn legions of obsessed fans like Innerspeaker did for Tame Impala. It’s a little too weird and a little too messy.
That’s exactly how these guys drew it up, though—as a proper ode to the freaky, fucked up side of psychedelic music.
