Hum

Hum came out of a Midwestern town (Champaign, Illinois) with a style that was inspired by Seattle grunge and a singer and guitarist, Matt Talbott, who was their Kurt Cobain. Fillet Show (Cargo, 1991) did not venture beyond diligent imitation, but with Electra 2000 (Cargo, 1993), having added guitarist Tim Lash and bassist Jeff Dimpsey to the band, they were at least able to put out one song (Double Dip) worthy of their masters.

You'd Prefer An Astronaut (RCA, 1995) was crammed full of cloying feedback and pop choruses, from Little Dipper to the ethereal Why I Like the Robins. At the same time, the album stunned grunge fans with Suicide Machine and I'd Like Your Hair Long, as well as Stars, which effectively capped off the grunge era.

Downward Is Heavenward (RCA, 1998) fine-tuned their formula: sentimental tunes are bolstered by heaps of incendiary riffs, all punctuated by a slow martial beat. As the guitars screech throughout the entire length of the album, Matt Talbott reels off vocal melodies in a resigned tone. The pairing of these two elements is alienating, as they essentially negate one another. Hum take Nirvana's approach to its extreme, emphasizing the melodic content of the melody as much as the lacerating power of the riffs. The sound of Isle Of The Cheetah, If You Are to Bloom, and Green to Me is that of five Hendrixes and ten Van Halens accompanying Stephen Merritt at his most neurotic, or Nirvana times itself with Suzanne Vega on vocals. The record fades into decreasingly organic and increasingly abstract songs, touching on the languor of "shoegaze" on Afternoon With The Axolotls, as well as mystical trance on the lengthy Dreamboat. The most melodic and least noisy track, bordering on folk, is Ms. Lazarus.

You'd Prefer An Astronaut (RCA, 1995) era stipato di zuccherosi feedback e di ritornelli pop, da Little Dipper all'eterea Why I Like The Robins, e fulminava gli appassionati del grunge con Suicide Machine e I'd Like Your Hair Long, oltre alla Stars, che corono` di fatto l'epoca del grunge.

Downward Is Heavenward (RCA, 1998) ha messo a punto la formula: motivetti teneri vengono deposti su cataste di riff incendiari e punteggiati da un lento battito marziale. Le chitarre stridono dall'inizio alla fine, il canto di Matt Talbott sdipana melodie in tono dimesso. L'accoppiata e` straniante, in quanto i due elementi sono praticamente la negazione l'uno dell'altro. Gli Hum estremizzano l'equazione dei Nirvana, accentuando tanto contenuto melodico della melodia quanto la potenza lacerante dei riff. Su Isle Of The Cheetah, If You Are To Bloom e Green To Me sembra di ascoltare cinque Hendrix e dieci Van Halen che accompagnino il piu` ombroso Stephen Merritt (Magnetic Field), o i Nirvana al quadrato con Suzanne Vega al canto. Il disco sfuma in canzoni sempre meno organiche, sempre piu` astratte, lambendo il languore degli "shoegazer" in Afternoon With The Axolotis, e la trance mistica nella lunga Dreamboat. La piu` melodica e meno rumorosa, quasi folk, e` Mr Lazarus.