Nashville-based duo Marc Byrd and Andrew Thompson make up the group Hammock, widely associated with a gentle ambient sound to varied forms of shoegaze and post-rock. They have been prolific since their debut album 'Kenotic' in 2005, and on their most recent seventh full-length studio release 'Departure Songs', the duo return to grace listeners with their celestial soundscapes. The double-album features many tracks tinged with sadness, addressing the powerful human want of hanging on when needing to let go.
Clean and versatile guitars feature prominently on the album, ranging from the crisp beginnings of 'Artificial Paradises' to the shimmery liquid form of 'Pathos'. The vocals are a step up from their place on previous albums, adding lyrics to a handful of tracks without side-lining the main action that is Hammock's signature ambient sound. Byrd's falsetto vocals soar and complement the hum of his guitar passages, while the angelic voice of his wife Christine Glass takes an ethereal yet substantial character of its own. The latter is particularly evident in '(Let's Kiss) While All The Stars Are Falling Down' where Glass skillfully switches between a silky smooth and a rougher tone that bring out the shivers and chills. 'Departure Songs' also continues the development of a stronger use of percussion featured on previous albums such as 'Chasing After Shadows...Living With Ghosts'. This results in the quicker tempo of the aforementioned 'Stars', to the slow, measured rhythmic backbones of 'All is Dream and Everything Is Real', 'Together Alone', and 'Hiding But Nobody Missed You.' Hammock also demonstrate their mature musical sense with of additional instruments that provide the extra flavour without becoming distractions, such as the xylophone in 'Words You Said...I'll Never Forget You Now' and brass outro of 'Dark Circles.'
The most skillful culmination of these musical elements naturally results in the strongest tracks on the album. 'Ten Thousand Tears Won't Save Your Life' allows listeners to gently float on echo-laden and soothing guitar passages, before building up with the brass and cello to a transition into drums and vocals. The climax happens only three-quarters through the song, and we are accompanied by a peaceful duo of strings and bass to the track's end. The epic-soundscape of 'Departure Songs' goes uncontested to 'Cold Front', a song that evokes a massive landscape and comparable to man's sense of place in the infinite cosmos. That along with 'Tape Recorder' capture the yearning for a familiar presence in the face of gaping absence, while expressing the beauty of love and loss, the hope of permanence in everlasting transience. On an album about departure, these two tracks speak most directly to very personal feelings of wanting to know someone completely, before facing the need to say goodbye.
'Departure Songs' remains a strong and mature addition to Hammock's discography. Byrd and Thompson show that their songwriting remains firmly attentive to what music is necessary for: the expression of instinctive emotions when separating from something beautiful. Thankfully Hammock's latest release provides ample evidence that the group will not depart from their musical endeavors any time soon.
Hammock released 'Departure Songs' yesterday, Tuesday 2nd October 2012.
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Clean and versatile guitars feature prominently on the album, ranging from the crisp beginnings of 'Artificial Paradises' to the shimmery liquid form of 'Pathos'. The vocals are a step up from their place on previous albums, adding lyrics to a handful of tracks without side-lining the main action that is Hammock's signature ambient sound. Byrd's falsetto vocals soar and complement the hum of his guitar passages, while the angelic voice of his wife Christine Glass takes an ethereal yet substantial character of its own. The latter is particularly evident in '(Let's Kiss) While All The Stars Are Falling Down' where Glass skillfully switches between a silky smooth and a rougher tone that bring out the shivers and chills. 'Departure Songs' also continues the development of a stronger use of percussion featured on previous albums such as 'Chasing After Shadows...Living With Ghosts'. This results in the quicker tempo of the aforementioned 'Stars', to the slow, measured rhythmic backbones of 'All is Dream and Everything Is Real', 'Together Alone', and 'Hiding But Nobody Missed You.' Hammock also demonstrate their mature musical sense with of additional instruments that provide the extra flavour without becoming distractions, such as the xylophone in 'Words You Said...I'll Never Forget You Now' and brass outro of 'Dark Circles.'
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