Inlet

I did not expect to write this review. One of my goals with this site is to only review bands and albums that I expect I will enjoy. Constructive criticism is great and all, but I'd rather devote my energy to spreading the word about bands and albums I love than picking apart ones I don't. It's not that I'll never write a negative review, but I'll probably reserve them for bands I love who have really let me down or otherwise thrown me for a loop.

And if I'm being honest, Hum has never been a band I've loved. This despite the fact that I'm a Shiner superfan and a card-carrying member of the Failure Mailing List since 1996. If you're a fan of those bands, worshipping Hum is almost mandatory. Everyone told me I would love them back in the day, and I've tried really damn hard to do just that over the decades. I've listened to all of Hum's albums dozens of times, and when anyone asks if I like them, I say, “Yeah, Hum's cool.” But depending on the audience, I've been known to quietly add, “but they're a little boring aren't they?”

My problem with the band mostly boils down to them straddling an awkward line between blistering, hooky space rock and meandering, sleepy dream pop. I keep wanting them to tear my face off with a memorable riff or plant an earworm in my brain that I just can't get out. But Hum have always been more about atmosphere and texture over riffs and vocal hooks, and it's just never come together for me. Sadly, my appreciation for the band begins and ends with the song, ‘Comin’ Home' (which any sane person with ears would have to admit is a beast of a track).

So on my first spin of Inlet, it came as no surprise to me that the music was slow, with minimal hooks, and that the band had generally gotten more impenetrable during their time off. My dream of an album full of ‘Comin' Home’-s was not to be. “Sigh… I just don't get all the fuss with this band. Fucking boring, dude…”

But then ‘The Summoning’ came on, and my ears perked up. It's odd that this track would catch my attention, because stoner doom is not one of my favorite metal genres. But when doom works, it works, and ‘The Summoning’ is a badass slab of shimmering, shoegazey doom metal. If ever there were a song to make you google “Doomgaze” to see if it's a genre yet, ‘The Summoning’ is it.

I found myself coming back to Inlet to hear ‘The Summoning' again and again, and was surprised when I started to enjoy ‘In The Den’ as well. That particular song begins and ends with a nice little bit of atmospheric fuzz layered beneath a thundering hook, the combination of which reminds me of Devin Townsend of all people. Is it possible Hum have spent their down time listening to Hevy Devy? I'm not complaining.

The song that finally broke me was ‘Desert Rambler’. It's fueled by another gnarly, grinding riff that I liked right off the bat. There's a lull in the middle of the track that was frustrating initially, serving as further evidence that Hum are experts at inducing sleep. But somewhere along the way, that interlude became a logical step in the song's progression—with a payoff in the final minutes punctuated by just a few expertly-placed lead notes.

This is a perfectly sequenced album. Every time I find myself getting tired of a quiet section, the riffs come thundering back. Every time the riffs threaten to get repetitive, a nice, swirly shoegaze drone kicks in or a more traditionally-structured song like ‘Step Into You' or ‘Cloud City’ breaks up any potential monotony. None of which is to say that Inlet is an easy listen. It requires patience and repeated listens to really sink it. It's a textbook slow grower of an album, but one I'm really glad I checked out. Next time someone asks me what I think of Hum, I'll say, “Yeah, I like Hum. Have you heard Inlet? So good.” And I won't even whisper a shitty qualifier after it.

P.S. A 2021 COVID-19 Vaccine Celebration tour with Failure, Shiner, and Hum needs to happen.

Well, I’m glad Eric finally had his awakening and is now officially a part of the holy trinity! My little satan death metal boy, “is all growns up and he’s all growns up!”

Maybe it’s my turn to join the holy trinity and give Shiner a real chance. I was always the guy that said, “Failure and Hum yes… and yeah Shiner’s cool too, I guess.” So right back at you, Eric!

I was an early lover of Hum and went to countless shows in St. Louis and in the midwest circa the late nineties. One particular show, I spent the entire pre-show and after show with Tim Lash, talking about his love affair with Wu-Tang Clan. He tried to convince me that hip hop was cooler than space rock, and that I should buy some Wu-Tang CD’s the next day. I never did—sorry Tim!

This album is classic Hum. During your first listen, it seems slow, moody and atmospheric. The depth of Hum takes time and commitment. This is definitely not the radio-friendly, You’d Prefer an Astronaut version of Hum. Inlet leans more towards Downward is Heavenward, but recording technology has caught up to Hum’s melancholy. They can actually punch you sonically in the heart REAL HARD, with studio tricks that were not possible way back in 1999. Hum have never sounded better.

Eric and I spoke on the phone recently and he commented on how this album needs the car test—playback at ‘Thomas Level’. This is something we invented back in the day of listening to CD's in our cars and blasting them at maximum volume while driving at a higher rate of speed than the authorities recommend. Hum passed the car test, and this album is worth your time—Hum fan or not.