Boston`s Horse Jumper of Love have been labelled as anything from Lo-Fi, Indie rock, post rock to slowcore and have managed to release five albums since their self-titled debut in 2016. They arrived in Birmingham as part of a fourteen date soiree in the UK this month which includes a few festival appearances.
Special guests tonight are local outfit Gingham, formed of five long-term friends that have cut their teeth in various different acts in the Birmingham music scene. According to social media they blend a wide range of repurposed alternative movements from the 60’s-90’s from jangle-pop to psych rock with the cutting edge independent music of the UK and US creating a sweet blend of dreamy noise. A fairly packed venue greets the band who take us on a really enjoyable, slightly eclectic but delightfully enjoyable half hour which includes the bands two single releases `From The Start` and more recent `Lucky` and others whose names sadly passed me by. A short but entertaining introduction for me to this group, whom I’ll certainly be looking out for in future.
HJOL released their latest album `Disaster Trick` last year which was a kind of creative reset for the band, partly due to vocalist and songwriter Dimitri Giannopoulos` sobriety. “This was the first album I’ve ever done where I went into it with a very clear mind,” he says. “In the past, we would just show up at a studio, drink, and record. Here, everything felt purposeful.”
The trio who include bassist John Margaris and drummer James Doran kick off the set with five tracks from said release opening with `Snow Angel` which has a fairly grungy texture with a kind of gentle vulnerability about it, a song that I must admit is my favourite from the album. `Today`s Iconoclast` rolls along and has a sort of slacker feel about it while `Wait Buy the Stairs` is a real stuttering slow burn. This final two numbers come with the reflective and tender `Wink` and `Gates Of Heaven` which is mid paced and has some jangling lighter riffs.
We enjoy a few of cuts from the band`s debut album with the jagged `Bagel Beach`, `Spaceman` which felt fairly intense, `Ugly Brunette` and `Orange Peeler` which were fairly contemplative in their own ways. The final number was the quite dreamy `I Poured Sugar In Your Shoes`. The band were honest enough to share that they`d only rehearsed what they`d played up until now but frontman Dimitri offered to play something solo as a kind of encore of sorts. A few numbers were shouted up with one that the singer said wasn`t theirs but he seemed to feel more relaxed sharing `The Natural Part` which I have to say worked so well, it was almost the standout song of this forty minute set.
There was a real intensity and unbridled power to what the trio shared tonight and while some may have wanted a longer set, for me it had a deep potency that needed time to seep in and reflect back on.
