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 The Legends of Laurel Canyon
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
It’s So Hard To Tell Who’s Going To Love You The Best
Karen Dalton
Transfiguration of Vincent
M. Ward
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Kinks
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Bob Dylan
Glitter and Doom Live
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Let It Roll: The Best of George Harrison
George Harrison
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Elvis Costello
Playing for Change
Songs Around the World
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Hymns
People familiar with Hymns would probably find it fairly easy to recommend their music, but if you come to this band with absolutely no clue as to what they are about, it isn’t quite so easy, at least not at first.
When this disk arrived in the mail, I completely misjudged it; First, I couldn’t tell the band name from the CD title. Second, the uninformative packaging and cover art led me to believe that the band might be a shy, low-budget, ballad-strewn brother/sister act, something that appealed to me so poorly that I ignored the disk for three weeks. One day, with nothing better to do, I finally broke the shrink-wrap open and played the disk for the first time…and I was pretty much stunned by what I heard.
“Brother/Sister” was nothing at all like my ridiculous presumptions. Hymns (sorry, but I still think it’s a terrible band name) are a roots rock, Americana-based band that suggests crossing Kings of Leon with an overly sensitive version of Pavement, or what Jack White and the Strokes would sound like if they met in therapy. Strange as it may sound, I mean that as a compliment.
The eleven songs featured here are tuneful and compelling, even when they thoroughly confuse me. The diversity shown here is impressive as well; the band manages to simultaneously sound like a punky, southern-gothic, alternative pop singer/songwriter outfit all at once, but with a consistency that should make them instantly recognizable.
I almost never play a disk more then three times before reviewing it, but “Brother/Sister” kept me coming back, trying to grasp a handle on its essence. After five run-throughs, I’m not much closer than I was after the first listen, but I am much more familiar with the songs, and I‘m starting to love them. “Friends of Mine,” “Power in the Street” and the title track are undeniably addictive, featuring simple but sharp arrangements that propel the songs forward. The lyrics remain mystifying, even after five plays, but I’m compelled by the singer’s sad, low-key delivery, even when the band’s energy level threatens to bowl him over. There’s a consistency here that is fairly rare, especially for a new band. “Brother/Sister” builds slowly and reaches an emotional climax on “Starboat,” a song that may (or may not) be about newfound maturity, and the distrust that accompanies it. Even if I’m completely wrong, I still love this song, and I’ll keep playing this disk until I can see Hymns play live.
Grade: 
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