What Have You Been Listening To? - August 12, 2015

Hella - Total Bugs Bunny on Wild Bass

Hella's third full length after Hold Your Horse Is and Bitches Ain't Shit but Good People, and honestly, I think it's some of their weakest work. Much less guitar on this album, as they more heavily use samples and synths. But this also means Zach's drums are pretty much on the forefront. It's definitely my least favorite Hella album as of now, but it's still interesting to hear their evolution.

Hella - Your DJ Children

Hella - Church Gone Wild

Lots of Hella this week. I only listened to Zach's half of this record. This is some of the hardest shit to get into I've seen in a while. A lot of it just seems like noise, but there are some really great moments too. The bulk of this record is drums accompanied by samples and stranges vocals ("these wizards don't believe in May") all done by Zach alone. I'll get around to the second half of the record, Chirpin Hard, sometime in the next few days.

Hella - Earth's First Evening Jimi Hendrix-less and Pissed

Hella - There's No 666 in Outer Space

This was probably my favorite of the bunch. As a result of adding two more members, Hella's sound grew exponentially over 2005-07, adding way more vocals and synths. To me this almost sounds like an even more messed up Mars Volta from the Bedlam period (singer Dan Elkan actually sounds quite a bit like Cedric of Volta). I was really happy with this record and is definitely a favorite now.

Hella - The Ungrateful Dead

One more

Hella - Tripper

Hella's 2011 effort to get back to basics and strip down to the core of Zach and Spencer. I think they did a wonderful job of sort of recreating the original sound they had but still keeping the vibe they had made over the years with the extra members. It's not just aother copy of Hold Your Horse Is, but it also has that vibe as well. It has one of my top 5 Hella songs, Self Checkout, which doesn't hurt, either.

Hella - Self Checkout

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