REVIEW: Hobex, Back in the 90's (Slash) / Collapsis, Dirty
Wake
- Jon Steltenpohl
It was a strange debut. Nearly a decade ago, I remember getting the first Dillon Fence album from Mammoth at the college radio station I was a DJ at. I put it in and listened. "Southern white boy pop funk" was about the only way I could describe it. Dillon Fence was irresistibly catchy and a little odd at the same time. As the years went on, Dillon Fence got signed by a major and drifted away from that initial funk sound towards a standard alternapop genre. Yet, they were never really as appealing as those early albums. In the mid 90's, they quietly broke up.
Today is a different story. Recently, two phoenixes have risen from the from the ashes. One phoenix, Hobex, is fronted by Dillon Fence's leader, Greg Humphreys, and the other phoenix is Collapsis with Dillon Fence drummer Scott Carle. Hobex takes all of the bizarre bits of funk that made its way through the early Dillon Fence releases, and fleshes them out into a great, unique sound. Collapsis, on the other hand, is a classic example of modern day "dirty" alternapop.
Hobex's Back in the 90s isn't exactly the album for every person, but for those who are interested, it's very good. Fans of the early Dillon Fence albums will "get it" immediately. New listeners might take a bit to catch on. Mainstream alternative music combines punk, rock, and hip-hop, yet few bands, save possibly for Young Fresh Fellows, have delved into funky disco beats and falsetto. Humphreys lives and breathes it. "I Was Wrong" sounds a bit like the slower funk-alternative bands of the 80's like Tackhead, while other tracks make you think of Van Morrison's unknown American cousin.
The opening track, "Groove, Baby", has a nice hammond organ, a laid back feel, and Humphreys' slightly gravely, but oh so smooth voice. "Am I losing my Mind" features a "wacka wacka" guitar break out of Starsky and Hutch, and horns from some of the Squirrel Nut Zippers adds a bit of authenticity to the funk to "Comment Tu T'appelle" "Back in the 90's" isn't quite as successful at the funk, but fortunately there are other tracks like "My Moonshine" which sounds just like classic Dillon Fence songs. Another Dillon-esque song, "Windows", was even featured in the Matt Damon movie Rounders.
As for Collapsis, well, despite having Dillon Fence's old drummer, they're really fronted by Mike Garrigan. They've got the classic alternative rock sound in the style of the Gin Blossoms, Buffalo Tom, or a harder edged Matchbox 20. It's typical "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek" soundtrack music. (In fact, after the first draft of this review, I did some final research on their website and found out that "Radio Friendly Girlfriend" has already been featured on "Party of Five".) Anyway, "Radio Friendly Girlfriend" is pretty good stuff. It's a little bit overblown with the angst at times, but Dirty Wake definitely has potential.
And the label must agree. Dirty Wake was supposed to be released last year, but has been delayed until February. The most likely theory is that Cherry/Universal is gearing up to make Collapsis the next big thing. Expect a massive onslaught. In addition to "Radio Friendly Girlfriend", "Two Egrets", "Superhero", and "Automatic" all have the definite potential to break out. "Two Egrets" probably requires royalty checks be sent to the scattered members of the Gin Blossoms, and "Automatic" has such a great alternapop sound to it that you'll have a tough time recognizing it from any of the other bands in this genre. As for "Superhero", well, it is just a great driving pop song while "Wonderland", with its lazy arpeggios, sounds a lot like The Samples.
Which is actually all a good thing. It's a relief to have an album from the faceless "Party of Five", one hit wonder crowd, which actually has some depth and some decent melodies. And, unlike, say, Sugar Ray, Collapsis and Hobex are real bands. You can listen through their entire album and enjoy them.
Collapsis and Hobex are both decent bands that, despite their pop appeal, still have some of what it really means to be alternative left in them. Both albums have the distinct feel of being recorded by actual touring bands. There are just enough rough edges here and there to let you know that they actually sat down and played these songs. So many current bands have their vocals spliced in one phrase at a time or gratuitous samples thrown on the top of the mix. When Beck does that, it's cool. But, when it's done on a pop song, it sounds like paint by numbers. Collapsis and Hobex are the real thing and are worth a listen.
