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hundred hands (grave017)
not being much of a fan of what the kids these days call emo (i.e. shuddering whenever that word is mentioned), I was unfamiliar with the background of the members of Hundred Hands, Aaron Pillar and Chris Crisci. They who have joined together to create Hundred Hands are also founding members of the Appleseed Cast, an emo/indie band out of Lawrence, Kansas. No, I didn't know of any Kansas bands either. Live and learn, my friends. But I have digressed. The moral of the story is that it seems everyone likes to have their little side projects, even sensitive emo bands. And whereas these pet projects can be artistically rewarding, sometimes it's probably a good idea not to stray from what you do best.
I've learned to expect good things from Graveface records. I've previously reviewed two CDs by Dreamend, one from a band called Spires That in the Sunset Rise (CD same name) and Transistor by Monster Movie. Luckily, this is no exception. Here we have another gorgeous recording. Though this one focuses more on vocals than the recently reviewed Dreamend CD the songwriting and musicianship are stellar on this as well. While these songs sound fantastic just coming out of my computer speakers, this is definitely a headphone CD. Vocalists Aaron Pillar and Peter Buxton have lovely soft voices that blend very nicely together. I'd have to offer that track 8 probably has the best song title I've heard in awhile. It's also a great song, maybe the best on the CD. It's got a more districting melody than some of the others and therefore is a stand out to me (even without the great title). Though Hundred Hands' style is more electronica, I'd say that fans of Radiohead, Coldplay, Tresspassers William and other atmospheric dreamy pop need to check out Hundred Hands. You won't be disappointed.
Hundred Hands - ‘Her Accent was Excellent’ Hundred Hands features members of the Appleseed Cast who I’ve never heard of but am reliable informed are excellent and I can believe it on this evidence. This is an album that doesn’t give much away; you’re not grabbed by hooks or captured by melody but it still has your attention throughout and leaves you content afterwards. The perception of our collective introduction to the third millennium as being a shaky one is, with good reason, shared by most people. What’s more is the belief that unrest - be it political, emotional or otherwise - breeds artistic reaction. Whereas one might expect the ambiguous situation we face to be reflected upon in the music we listen to, and produce, the response presented by Hundred Hands has been minor.
Hundred Hands find themselves the wrong side of the line that divides consistency - which I’m usually one to commend - and stagnancy. Regardless of Appleseed Cast guitarist Aaron Pillar’s efforts to gut, streamline and reincarnate Hundred Hands, the only striking feature about Her Accent Was Excellent is its likeness to Little Eyes, the project’s 2001 debut EP: the songs are drawn-out, heart-strung affairs that subtly bask in (and fail to emerge from) emotional torment. While technological advancement may have granted Pillar and his musical partner, Peter Buxton, access to sounds from which the former was limited from in 2001, the feeling is much the same. As a project, Hundred Hands presents itself as The Appleseed Cast’s overshadowed younger brother and effectively explores the same avenues that The Appleseed Cast did with Mare Vitalis. The journey commenced by “Waiting in Denver, 4:05am” is sluggish, dry and unrefined. Aside from the odd synthetic twist, it lacks the distinguishing features that might set it aside from the million and one post-Sunny Day Real Estate wannabes. Pillar’s vocals are competent but unnecessarily raspy and don’t add much to the overall mood. By “How Many Licks to the Center” the album begins to drag, and what follows proves incapable of recapturing the attention lost during the first few cuts. While Hundred Hands make no barefaced mistakes, they do themselves few favours. Her Accent Was Excellent subsequently falls by the wayside of the lo-fi indie benchmark and will surely not prove memorable. Without a significant facelift, Hundred Hands are destined to gently bob in the sea of indie-rock indifference.
When I first picked up this CD and saw the washed out color photo from the late 60’s or early 70’s, I figured I was in a for a low budget garage band album. From the opening track “Waiting In Denver 4:05AM” it was something I was not expecting. With the low vocals, acoustic guitar and keyboard touches here and there, it brought to mind Porcupine Tree. This is a good thing! All music is performed by Aaron Pillar and Peter Bruxton (Aaron Pillar being a founding member of the Appleseed Cast). The song “A Downtown Scene” reminds me of Nirvana but much more laid back and not the wall of guitars one would expect part way through. Instead this is an easy track to listen to and I bet it would appeal to the college crowd with its electronic rhythms and simple acoustic guitar. After that “Don’t Fall Asleep” dwells more on electronica throughout the all-instrumental track. “Give Up yeah” continues along in that vein and these two tracks could have easily been blended together as they seem to flow into each other. The final cut “Gayhouse.com” (no I did not go to the site to see what it was about!) has a nice dreamy air about it.
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