The Hoosiers Arrive with ‘Compassion’ – the New Album & Live In-Store @ Wax and Beans, Bury.

Originally formed in Indianapolis, The Hoosiers are an English pop-rock band, coming back after 3 years with a new, exciting album – ‘Compassion’ – released on the 15th of May. The band name itself derives from the colloquial name for a person who comes from Indiana – a Hoosier. Today, this term also refers to characteristics like hospitality, friendliness, pride and resilience – virtues which we can easily find across The Hoosiers’ discography.

Upon formation of the band, the complete group made a return from Indianapolis to London after compiling material for their debut album, firstly releasing ‘The Trick To Life’ and then its second single, ‘Goodbye Mr. A’ which was later featured in the FIFA 08 video game’s soundtrack. Their Britpop, pop rock and indie rock project, however, didn’t enjoy the greatest reputation amongst critics during the launch of their career, having been nominated for the Worst Band at the NME Awards in February of 2008 – something I personally cannot wrap my head around (why is that a real ‘award’ category, and why would they be nominated – it’s beyond me).

Nonetheless The Hoosiers did not let that discourage their creative ambitions and their debut album is now making a full-circle comeback, both members picking up where they left off, collaborating once again with original members (Martin Skarendhal and Sam Swallow) and “honing a more adult take on the jubilant sound that made a name for them back in 2007.”

If the band name is symbolic of its traits, then the upcoming album’s title, ‘Compassion’, will be a call for loving action and an emblem of Sharland’s and Sparkes’ beliefs. Both members express the record’s moral charge: “Releasing an album into the world is like releasing your intentions so we wanted to approach it as if we had a genie offering us one wish. On a personal and political level, it’s apparent that we could all do with more compassion. We don’t just want to leave the world with better music than when we found it , we want to leave it a more confident, compassionate spinning orb.”

The cover art for ‘Compassion’ is simply wonderful, colourful, in a way, nostalgic and by no means would I call it an arbitrary choice. Inspired by a trip to an art gallery, the duo explain on their Instagram page that the artwork was the starting point of the record. Originally made by a Polish illustrator, Roman Klonek, indeed the particular illustration featured on the album was decided to be so before the music had even been made, thus later also informing the sound as well as music video animations and their characters. Klonek expressed his use of Japanese influence after having travelled abroad, and finding pleasant bewilderment that comes with foreign lands and languages. Submerged in blissful strangeness, it is the “ability to find beauty amid incomprehension [that] feeds into how Roman designs characters”. How does this feed into the album itself? Well, the world is a little incomprehensible right now, but the duo want to make it feel lovely and homelike despite its raging chaos.

Sharland and Sparkes are equally outspoken about the rising cost of gigs and merch, expanding on the issue further on The Standard online magazine: “If those themes run through the album, they also extend to how they view their audience. Both are outspoken about the rising cost of live music, arguing that ticket prices and merchandise have reached unsustainable levels. “Gig tickets are too much. Merchandise is too much. Everything’s getting too much,” says Sparkes. “Times are hard, and artists need to take some responsibility for what they can control.”

Throughout May, The Hoosiers are embarking on an in-store tour throughout the UK, their tickets starting from around £14, in bundles of ticket and CD or ticket and vinyl (in different colour variations). Their UK tour in October will be priced at around £32, and the tickets are available to purchase through their website: The Hoosiers. Of course, the ticket prices depend on the venue, thus the prices I’ve mentioned are just an average based on their Manchester and surrounding area gigs. I think many from the music industry could learn a thing or two from these lads.

In Store Gig

On the 11th of May, I attended The Hoosiers’ in-store gig at the Wax and Beans shop in Bury. First of all, a massive shoutout to the staff working that evening, showing up with kindness and warmth to the guests. Wax and Beans itself is a lovely, little shop that hosts regular live events, however I do have to say that perhaps the capacity was overestimated for such a cosy space that particular night. People bunched up right to the front, and still poured out onto the corridor and even behind the bar/café area itself.

Listed as an acoustic gig, Sparkes started off with an easygoing and slowed version of ‘So High’ which definitely further set me up with the expectation that the entire set will be stripped back and unhurried. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Sharland and Sparkes showed up to the gig with plenty of humour, joy and enthusiasm, slowly building up the set to bouncing tunes from their own discography and covering other artists – notably, the ‘Pink Pony Club’ cover encouraged the audience to join in a sing-along together, and Sharland improvised one of the set’s songs to finish it with Hozier’s ‘Too Sweet’. Nonetheless, The Hoosiers’ own classics like ‘Goodbye Mr A’ landed best with the audience, getting them to sing and sway louder than during any other song.

The performer-to-audience exchange was beyond ample. During ‘Don’t Hang Your Head’, Sparkes took a stroll amongst the audience, embracing and dancing with some. Whilst performing a song about feeling strange in one’s own head (and the world), it brought some lightness into the atmosphere but there is something to be said about this simple yet impactful act of companionship and community – nicely tying in with the album’s themes.

Sparkes’ own vocal capacities are precise, too. With another momentary comeback to stripped back instrumentals, he performed ‘Lonely Together’, holding his melodies high and playing around with scales, falsettos and head voices impressively. Even though the gig itself was short ’n’ sweet, rounding up to about 50 minutes total, it was admirable to see Sparkes hold up such high notes for pretty much the entirety of it. On the note of stripped back versions, whilst ‘Lonely Together’ was the perfect choice for a laidback tune, I do wish that ‘So High’ was performed closer to its original recorded version – ecstatic and elated.

Regarding the set length, it was definitely surprising to see the end of it so quickly – especially when the humour was good and the atmosphere warm. Keeping in mind The Hoosiers’ upcoming tour in October, however, it could be interpreted that their in-store gigs became a ‘taster’, or ‘teaser’ that incentifies one to attend the main, big event later this year. Post-gig, Sharland and Sparkes invited everyone in the audience to a signing of merchandise and for a quick chit-chat – perhaps, this makes up for the time lost in performance itself.

That same week, on the 15th of May, the complete ‘Compassion’ finally saw the light of day. From start to finish, the album is simply joy and cheer bunched up into a 34-minute record, aptly described as a “big, stanky hug of a record from a band reborn” by Muso Muso and clarified by Sparkes in Jace Media Music: “We love playing in this band more than ever and we feel so loved by the fans we have and this album is a big, stanky hug back to them”.

Album Review

Opening the record with ‘Multiply’, the track’s instrumentals fall between indie rock and surf rock. If one went into this album blind, Sparkes is quick to reveal what we’re in for, singing: “They wanna only divide, we wanna love and multiply/ Having the time of our lives, when we multiply. Show compassion to the hateful”. The importance for solidarity knits the whole album together, like a sweater that huddles people closer.

Continuing the sentiment in ‘So High’, – one of my personal favourites of the record – the track feels like the background, opening track to a teen comedy, that reminds us exactly why we’re here on this planet: for the spontaneity and connections we build. It’s all about sharing the love we’re carrying in our hearts, at a time when interconnectivity is more important than ever: “I wanna show you how I live my life, so high/ Come up and join me/ Maybe, baby, we could share tonight, so high”.

The fifth and title track, ‘Compassion’, on the other hand takes a more dramatised energy and post-punk-reminiscent, tousled instrumentals. As the track builds, and builds, the more tumultuous it feels, which personally didn’t resonate with me but added relevant fluidity to the record.

The following track, ‘Don’t Hang Your Head’ takes the total opposite course. Accompanied by just a simple guitar melody and Sparkes’ softened, humming vocals, he reminds us that not everything bad in the world signifies its end: “This doesn’t have to be the end, don’t hang your head in shame/ You’re not the one to blame”. It’s a wonderfully heart-touching track – the ultimate ‘stanky hug’ that The Hoosiers wanted to give us through a record.

‘Man From The Magazine’ is another personal favourite, especially because it could be interpreted in so many interesting ways. This time, Sparkes takes us into the life of a celebrity, a man who appears on magazine covers, who can give his ‘crush’ whatever they might want and need: “And I can get you what you want/ You got so little, I got lots/ I’m the man from the magazine, make your dream a reality/ Don’t you want me now?”. Whilst this may seem to focus on materialistic, tangible goods, the end of the song reassures us that ‘the man from the magazine’ has just as plenty of love to offer. We can pose the question then, if Sparkes is exposing the ‘surface’ level of attraction people feel in modern romance, during which emotional connection loses substance and frequency.

Perhaps it’s a reminder that beyond the face of a magazine cover, there’s always pages full of love, affection and sensibility.

Before wrapping up the album with a short, instrumental, video-game-esque outro, – ‘The Final Piece of the Puzzle’ – The Hoosiers take us inside our own hearts and call for self-love in ‘Permission To Rest’. Whereas most of ‘Compassion’ has thus far encouraged kindness to be shown outwards and spread amongst society, this time we’re bringing it inwards and cultivating it within and for ourselves: “You don’t need permission to rest, you’ve got to show yourself love/ You did your best.”

With reference to the outro then, I would have enjoyed seeing some symmetry with an intro that mirrors ‘The Last Piece of the Puzzle’. It would have signified a nice welcome into the world of ‘Compassion’, whose positivity will stay with you beyond just the half-hour of the album. In general then, ‘Compassion’ is a simple, fun, incredibly positive and uplifting album. Without over-complicated or ambiguous lyrics, it’s a pleasure to listen to when in need of some frolic in life. The instrumentals are just as pleasant, bringing some variety and yet keeping a distinct, clear ‘Hoosiers’ sound. It’s very audible that the band has plenty of fun making this album, and you’ll have plenty of fun listening to it.

If you’re a fan of the following bands: Two Door Cinema Club, Bad Suns and Royel Otis, you’ll most definitely be a fan of the sun-filled and peppy band, The Hoosiers and post-listening to the album, here’s another reminder to get some tickets using the band’s official website: Tour – The Hoosiers. Here, you’ll also find ways to support them through merchandise and analogue music formats.