Let me be frank. Picking up records based off of the information given on the record sleeve is usually (99.9% of the time) a tenuous proposition. More than likely, the record will not come through on its boastings. I normally make it a point to never believe a damn thing that those stickers announce ( i.e. "the best band in Madagascar"). In addition, when a band states that this is a recording session in "experimental" nature, it usually translates as "This is a piece of crap that the record label forced us to put out..." or "We are pretentious sons of bitches!"
All of that aside, I broke with my normal modus operandi with the purchase of Hogback Mountain Sessions Vol. 1 from the band Forensics. For some reason, that day I was looking for said pretentious piece of crap on which to waste my money. I enjoyed their last album, Things to Do When You Should Be Dead Anyway, and figured that this could not be all bad. It must be said that it was a wise purchase and my expectations were way off base here as instead of noisy feedback laden soundscapes, Hogback Mountain Sessions Vol. 1 was instead an extremely mellow set of instrumentals.
"I Need to Talk to Hank Hank" is the opening track. The song starts off so quiet that it is barely audible. The intensity slowly builds as the song progresses while the mood created shifts a few times. It has a pretty sound that reminds the listener of a falling rain or rainy day type of feel to it, especially at the end. "Eldon Diesel Rides Again" is almost humorous as Forensics plays behind a podcast by none other than Eldon Diesel (Naturally). Even though the music is repetitious, it compliments the podcast excellently, making neither the music nor the spoken material itself the focal point of the track. It all works as a whole. "Crappy Shop (50 Cent Diss Track)" is a bit more of an upbeat tune (but only a small bit). This song has a real interesting melody that dominates the song in several different variations as the dynamics change. "Half Mast" rounds out the Hogback Mountain Sessions Vol. 1 with another super laid back track.
I honestly cannot explain why I like this record so much. I just do. Maybe it hits me in the right way. Maybe I just "get" it. Some people will absolutely love this record. I can understand how people would consider it to be exactly the type of scenario that I discussed, and not be into it at all. But I love it.
