I Listened to HNBL’s ‘Time’s Up’.

Band: HNBL
Album: Time’s Up
Release Date: February 2, 2024
(Bandcamp) || (Instagram) || (Spotify)

There’s something so rich and pure about a “local” band. The material is untainted by any Bigger Picture. The influences are worn so much more openly but at the same time almost defiantly. When a group comes together and grinds out their music, hits a point where they’re confident enough to enter a studio and put the completed piece on wax, there’s a high level of raw hope that gets siphoned off and mined into something truly special. From there, the music can go anywhere. They can grow, they can flame out, they can evolve, adapt, or crumble. But there’s that first phase of their growth that is unmistakable. It’s like the honeymoon phase of creation. It’s been a long time since I have listened to a band at this stage without knowing the musicians personally, so it’s super exciting to get my ears around something like this. Exciting to take a dive into something at this gritty stage of their life.

Listening to this record and the way it opens, a didgeridoo, the heavy toms, the pedals and ambiance, I had a feeling that HNBL was gunning for a modern Tool sound. It had everything that their post-Lateralus entries had put on display. There was more at play than just the music, it was the mood, the build, the way that the sound became the environment. As this record played forward, from beginning to end, I could see that the ambitions of the band were super high, and they wanted their instruments to do much of the talking.

The biggest and most sweeping element of the band is its lead guitar playing, as much of the flair of the songs is brought along with the soloing, the chugging and the lamenting of that very core element of the band. In the same way that bands like Muse aim high for creating an entire atmosphere, a “main character” element, that’s what HNBL seems to thrive on. Almost every song has some kind of a personality, some kind of distinct mask that it wears and acts in the guise of. Through the first few tracks, we see the drama of a waltz in ‘Pandemonium’, a spotlight on the driving chugging almost like a Russian Circles track, and an opening in ‘Dischord’ that’s reminiscent of some of Dredg’s best work. Later in the record there are a few moments where the singer leans into the hydraulics of his voice and pulls out some deep Layne Staley vibes. And just like their previous EP, on the track ‘Mediocre’, they start to have a big The Real Thing era Faith No More sound.

You can find a lot of the influence of early 00’s alternative and aggressive rock music at the fore, but instead of caping themselves in the robes of the shoegaze or grunge movement that’s been popping up, they free themselves from a pigeonhole and go for a far more progressive and diverse style. While the vocals are not the kind of style I would typically seek out, there’s a high level of quality to them, and some of the notes that he’s able to hit are beyond the scope of what bands at this stage are typically reaching for. There’s a lot of early understanding and implementation of strong hooks and big choral vocal leads that tell of a higher ambition. A band like this sounds like one that you strive to believe in, one that makes you want to see live just to witness where else they plan to go musically.

Time signatures dash in and out, riffs change mid-measure. There are a ton of super cool ideas at play throughout the album and the chops of the band are always at the forefront. This feels like a record written to showcase the guitarist, but although the spotlight lands almost squarely on that corner, there’s a great deal of love to go around.

I think the biggest drawback to a sound that touches so many points of light is that on some level, they seem to lack a unique identity that will separate them from the fold. The raw materials are there, and I think they are supple and being molded in the artists’ hands in real-time. For my taste, I typically prefer a more firmly edited hand, one that removes a few of the solos, focuses on meatier riffs, on more saccharine hooks, and songs that hover closer to the 4-minute mark where these tend to amble and bound into the five minute and beyond range. All that considered, this band does this sound right and I think they’re primed to do some damage out there. Really glad that this record found its way to me.

For Fans Of: Tool, Muse
Check Out: Dischord