I love the Voice of the Beehive, they were wicked - the vocals, the attitude, the catchy perfect 60’s inspired punk tunes, perfect. THE HICKORIES are in the same vein to some extent, maybe not as playful, they definitely verge on the Alt. Country side, but the general feel is there.
Think jingly-jangly Rickenbacker guitars, tambourines, copious
hand-clapping, tight playful female harmonies and whimsically quirky subject matter, and you’re close to what the Hickories are about. Their brand of folk-inspired indie rock (i.e. songs with lots of harmonies and acoustic guitars), has a distinct American west coast ring about it, it’s lovely.
Given the dire weather we’ve been subjected to for what seems like years, hearing this sunny EP gives you hope that there is light at the end of the tunnel, and at some point in the not too distant future, we’ll be able to leave the house without wearing five layers of wooly jumpers, and we can start wearing flip-flops in public again.
The EP is reminiscent of Throwing Muses, early REM, the B-52s and Dar Williams, as well as Voice of the Beehive, Gram Parsons, oh Lord you could go on and on. Don’t think that they’re derivative, far from it – you can hear their influences but this doesn’t take away from their individual sound. And their influences appear to be wide ranging to say the least. Furthermore, most bands stand on the shoulders of giants so to speak – it’s called musical education.
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The songs are wonderful, they have a real pop sensibility that is infused with a healthy dose of folk ethic. They sing about lost loves, and their penchant for 60’s music. “It was 1965/ I wasn’t even yet alive/ But I heard it on the stereo/You’re the one I want to know” [“1965”].
The best two songs out of the five are for me “Lost in Pensylvania”, a sleepy, very cool sounding ballad which really showcases the intertwining harmonies of Michelle Volpe (Vocals, guitar) and Megan Sharp (backing vocals), and the aforementioned “1965”, which is just pure unadulterated fun, kinda country, kinda indie, it just makes you want to pick up a hairbrush and start singing into it.
The Hickories are a breath of fresh air in the midst of a scene rapdily becoming turgid and stagnant. This is going to be on the soundtrack of my Summer (when it finally gets it’s arse into gear and comes along) – so go and check them out. But remember when listening to this, even though you’ll have the urge to immediately start frolicking on a beach somewhere, it’s still very cold outside, so wrap up.
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