In 2008, Ottawa-based band Hilotrons released a record called Happymatic. It was then that I was exposed to their synth-driven, pop melodies. It is one of those albums that require minimal distance in order to be ready for another listen. Five years later, I still frequent that album, and now, five years later, the band has finally released another.
The follow up LP, At Least There’s Commotion, does not waste any time getting started. The first track, “Venus At Your Back Door,” bursts into your speakers with rhythmic swagger. The drums are huge and in cahoots with a groovy bass. Layered over this are front man, Mike Dubue’s angst driven, soulful vocals with the line, “I know he got the hooks, I know, I know, I know.” You know who got the hooks? Hilotrons, that’s who. I challenge you not to move with an awkward bobble-head motion to this song. Up next is the Springsteen-esque ballad, “Runaway Heart,” where Dubue laments about an unrequited lover who, “will never be a small town girl,” and is, “made for the city.” The entire album is thematic with a romantic longing to attain wholeness through love, such as the doo-op styling of, “My Number,” where our narrator sings, “I’ve been waiting for a woman to make me feel good all the time.” However, this desire for love is not so innocent as this song suggests. In “She Knows My Condition (Part 1),” a complex layer is revealed in the psyche of our narrator. Dubue sings, “I always think I’m in love/ When all I have is a love that doesn’t feel right.” This suggests an internal struggle; the problematic nature of getting what you want only to discover a dissonance within the resulting reality of one’s desire. Nothing is quite right here.
Confusion rises to the surface and there is a sense of being betrayed by that that was once coveted above all else. The album comes to a strong close with the second last track, “Danger World,” introduced with slow ambient sound effects. Familiar reverbed and delayed guitar interjects and an upbeat, dreamlike atmosphere is achieved. This song serves as an optimistic last hurrah before the dreary reality present in the last song, “Emergency,” sets in.
Confusion rises to the surface and there is a sense of being betrayed by that that was once coveted above all else. The album comes to a strong close with the second last track, “Danger World,” introduced with slow ambient sound effects. Familiar reverbed and delayed guitar interjects and an upbeat, dreamlike atmosphere is achieved. This song serves as an optimistic last hurrah before the dreary reality present in the last song, “Emergency,” sets in.
If you are interested in traversing a plethora of Hilotrons-related material on the Internet, you are out of luck. The band keeps a low profile on the web and in the physical world. There are no tour dates for this release outside of Canada, and aside from a few festival appearances in late 2012, they have remained tucked away in the north, one of Ottawa’s best kept secrets.
Hilotrons’ previous release holds a very special place in my heart. It remains untouchable, preserved in my own personal time period of initial new music discovery when the radio ceased to be a reliable source for good tunes, and the necessity emerged to search elsewhere for exceptional sonic talent. While a new release cannot replace the significance of this first love, At Least There’s Commotion, momentarily satisfies a hunger for more Hilotrons. Their new record represents a move toward greater accessibility, higher production values, and a resurgence of a kind of songwriting that has been missed over the past half decade. Hopefully the band will continue to write and make it a point to release their unique blend of synth-pop on the regular.
Grade: B+
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