A must read: an article by my best friend and fellow Sweet Tangerine dot net webmaster, Sera.
Gold Motel: An in-depth band review from a (former) Hush Sound fan
The honest to blog truth is that if you’re reading this, then you’re most likely a Hush Sound fan. I mean, face it, we’ve been following Greta since 2004. For four long-ass year we sang along to Bob, fangirled over Chris and laughed with Darren. When the band went on ‘hiatus’, the fans split into two;
1. The ones who love The Hush Sound so much that they are eager to follow any new projects.
2. The ones who love The Hush Sound so much that they refuse to follow any new projects.
If you fall into the first category, then deep down, Gold Motel is basically ‘The Hush Sound, Version Two’ to you.
No, seriously. Just admit it. No one has said it out loud yet. But it’s true. We’re all dying to hold on to the last shreds of a band that was with us for years of joy and pain.
This is also the reason why the second category refuses to follow any new bands.
I’m right, on paper.
Hanging out with the band, hearing the songs, and talking to Greta have all made me realize that Gold Motel is far from the Hush Sound.
In fact, The Hush Sound was just the beginning.
Spot the Differences
The first time I saw the Hush Sound live was in 2006. They were the baby of the Decaydance family, singing to fans of other bands every night on tours that they didn’t fit in.
The band members were all on the awkward side. Bob was openly shocked that I had traveled a considerable distance to see them live. Chris blushed at every compliment. Darren stayed out of site, attached to his phone, dazzling people with a smile and minimal conversation. Greta filled awkward silences with anecdotes about her day.
It was charming, really. I fell in love with their sincerity, honesty and down to earth-ity.
The Hush Sound was like the little engine that could; A local band from the suburbs of Chicago, signed to that dude from Fall Out Boy’s label.
They were instantly thrown into a full blown arena tour, which was not enough to prepare them for a summer tour with Panic at the Disco. Albeit a smaller tour, the downsize in venues only meant the 14 year old fangirls had easier access to them.
It was sink or swim, and the Hush Sound tried to swim. But then they got tired and stopped swimming and drowned and now they’re dead.
(Moment of silence.)
Greta, on the other hand, prevailed. She took everything in, and never let anything phase her. She learned. She grew. She read books. She studied music. She went to India. She was a (sexy) vegetarian. She picked up hobbies like yoga. She evolved.
She moved forward in a step that took her back. Back to simpler times when bands made music without hiding behind gimmicks, in makeshifts studios, with nothing but passion in their pockets.
Gold Motel is a band that has lived and learned, that makes lighthearted music without taking anything too seriously, except for the music itself. The music is, and will always be, the whole fucking point.
Take note, Panic(!?) at the Disco.
Buy Gold Motel’s debut LP Summer House on iTunes now. Thank me later.
