★★★☆
Regarded as one of the most exciting new additions to Australia’s rock scene, Harts has delivered the record we’ve all been been waiting for.
Though his sound is marked out by deliberate invocations of the psychedelic soul power of the ’60s it also mixes in the indie-rock stylings of a more recent time.
After being eased into the experience through ‘Smoke (Intro)’, ‘Fear In Me’ drops you right in the thick of it.
‘Hope’, by contrast, begins with the inspiring opening line, “Others discourage / They don’t understand what we can achieve with a little bit of hope.” The track binds a driving electronic arrangement with an electric guitar section that’ll send shivers down any music lover’s spine, while ‘Desire’ sits as one of the album’s most dynamic tunes. A synthesiser mimics a string section while a ghostly vocal asks, “Am I a slave to the world? Or am I spiritually free?” while piano keys trickle around it.
Although the entirety of the record demands your time and attention, if you were forced to choose just a few tracks to serve as a taster, you can’t go past the almost seven-minute-long ‘Ain’t Too Far Gone’, an incredible showcase of a whole slew of talents.
Harts’Smoke Fire Hope Desireis out now on Dew Process/Universal.
