Review Summary: Amazingly crafted piece of indie-folk with pop, rock and alternative roots that blend into an experience you'll want to live over and over. Definitely worth the buy, you will never regret it.
The Oh Hello's popped up on my radar during one of Bandcamp.com adventures while trying to find some new, amazing bands, and let me say...Oh god, I've found one.
The Oh Hello's are an indie-folk-pop-rock duo of siblings Maggie and Tyler Heath hailing from San Marcos, Texas, a place that has given us the likes of Blue October and Ray William Johnson. Up to date now? Well let's start this review then. It's not every day you hear a band release something so mind-blowing that you want to let it play at all times during your life. That's exactly what this does.
Their debut release, aptly titled "The Oh Hello's," is a 4-track EP and is possibly one of, if not, the best debut release you'll ever. Without even finishing the first track, you understand what you're in for: an emotional roller coaster you'll want to ride over and over. The first track is Hello My Old Heart and is arguably the best track on this EP. It starts off with light finger-picked guitar echoed by quiet voices which brings me to my first point:
1. The Oh Hello's are masters of production.
This album is chalk-full of multilayered instruments and vocals that perfectly blend and compliment each other; no one sound sticks out or masks another. "hello my old heart / how have you been / are you still there inside my chest?" sings Tyler over an acoustic guitar riff that is about as memorable as that scene in The Matrix where Neo dodges the bullet by doing his full body backward dodge thing (you know what I mean). The song really takes off when the second verse hits and instead of light arpeggios, we're hit with chord strumming atop Maggie harmonizing to Tyler followed by a tiny choir in the chorus, bringing us back to arpeggios in the third verse (yes there is a third verse) that are played faster.
The song itself reflects on someone who has kept their heart hidden away for years and is wanting to give it to someone special which helps bring me to point number 2:
2. The lyrics they've created are touching and extremely (get ready for the pun) heart-felt. Each song is an experience for the listener that can take you to the best or worst of places.
As cliche as it sounds, Hello My Old Heart is one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard and it gets better when the drums, bass and background vocals hit in the last 45 seconds. I strongly recommend this song to a fan of any genre whether it is pop, rock or even country. You're sure to be humming this for time to come. I don't want to spend the entire review on this one track, which I could, so let's move on to track 2.
After that hard-hitter of a song, we're met with Maggie taking the helm this time on Lay Me Down. This song is different than Hello My Old Heart because it's more upbeat the whole way through. Maggie's voice is unique due to the way she pronounce things like "years" and the letter "r." It's not bad by any means, but it makes her standout among other female vocalists sicne it gives The Oh Hello's a more folk-y feeling. Lay Me Down incorporates what sounds like a mandolin in this time but keeps the same instrumentation as before: drums, guitar, harmonizing and background vocals.
Track 3 is Cold Is the Night and is the ballad of the EP and is also, in my opinion, a sequel to Lay Me Down. This is because Lay Me Down speaks of running away while Cold Is the Night is about wanting someone to run to you. This song, along with track 4, isn't fronted by one or the other but alternates lead vocals and harmonies throughout the lyrics. It's a great song, but is the weakest on The Oh Hello's just because the instrumentation gets a tiny repetitive after a little, but lyrically it is probably the best. My views on this song are mixed because of those 2 conflicting ideas.
Finally, we're at the end of our journey with the uptempo, instrumentation focused Trees. Their aren't many lyrics in this song compared to the past 3 songs since the main feature on this are the different sounds and combinations they make. Also, this song is more electric than the others, swapping out the acoustic for an electric guitar. This song's music is pretty catchy, with the main riff being this high little electric guitar solo that I've been humming lately just because it's that memorable. This brings me to my third and final point that I could have made much earlier:
3. The Oh Hello's songs have a pop radio catchiness but not to the point where it becomes cookie cutter formulaic. Their lyrics and music are unique, giving you a perfect combo of indie-folk music played against deep and meaningful lyrics that have that pop catchiness we're all so accustomed to.
So overall is this worth the buy? Dear heavenly Satan yes. I'd give it a 5/5 rating if I didn't feel that Cold Is the Night is repetitive, but go to their website and immediately download this. You won't regret it.
Did I mention that it's a "name your price" EP? Get it now.
The Oh Hello's - The Oh Hello's 4.8/5
