Album Review: Hunden – A Calming Press

I will be the first to admit I have not been that great about tossing out reviews and whatnot. If this one makes it to your eyes, then I am one stoked music lover. It kills me it’s already March and this is my first post of the year, but I write this with the best intentions.

Cleveland’s Hunden is a fuzz-heavy, riff-supreme threesome that, upon listening to their debut, forced me to dust off the keyboard and just hammer out something to talk about it.

Dare I mention they are a Northeastern Ohio supergroup in a sense?

Featuring Toby Reif (Sidekicks, Orbits), Nick Schmitt (Harvey Pekar), and Adam Peduch (Two Hand Fools, Heart Attack Man), Hunden already had my attention the moment I heard anything given their history with the local music scene.

It was no shocker how “Escape Trajectory” pretty much blew out the speakers. The track was just brutal from the start and Reif enough supplied vocal angst that had me thinking of Hum and Helmet. Then “Subtext” came on that was more aligned with Sunny Day Real Estate.

“Healer” carried so many Cave In vibes it was not even funny. Technical and catchy with brute force. Stephen Brodsky, take note of these guys… Seriously, this track is just so together and produced perfectly.

And it is not just all fuzz and riffs, but there sure is a ton and it is amazing. “A Calming Press” has softer moments with piano, but soon just ramps back up. “Prix Fixe” was beyond superb with its ups and downs.

A Calming Press clocks in at just under 30 minutes, but it just smacks right into you barely giving you a moment to breathe. Given where these guys came from, it certainly is a new avenue to tackle musically, and they succeeded in doing so.

Let me be clear, I am 47 years old and thrilled bands like Hunden still get me all sorts of amped up. I cannot wait to see these dudes play No Class on March 22nd with post-hardcore screamers Brain Cave. Hunden has the potential to turn some major heads with this release, I promise you, totally worth the listen.

BRAIN CAVE, CONSUMER CULTURE, KNUB, & HUNDEN @ NO CLASS

Friday, March 22, 2024

Brain Cave
Consumer Culture
Knub
Hunden
———
Bar Show
Cost: $10
Doors: 8pm
Age Limit: All Ages
Tickets: At The Door
RSVP ON FACEBOOK

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