Hammock – Love In The Void – Album Review
by Killian Laher

Hammock have been releasing albums for nearly 20 years, but the last few have been getting quieter and quieter, culminating in 2021’s Elsewhere, which is a very distilled down and blissed out side of the band.  This time around, they have moved towards the mainstream, with catchier melodies and punchier arrangements than of late.  It starts out with the almost celestial Procession, before the title track, which goes full on Sigur Ros at their most epic, full of roaring guitars and slow, imperious drums.  Drums, which hadn’t been very evident on recent albums, this time around are well and truly back.  UnTruth goes all indie shoegaze with strummed guitars and low vocals.  The centrepiece is probably the ten minute It’s OK To Be Afraid of the Universe, slow and ponderous like prime Mogwai.

On the face of it, this is a much more instant album than any of their more recent releases.  There are multiple standouts, such as the slow build up of the short but aptly-titled Release, moody epic Gods Becoming Memories, full of portentous piano and It’s In This Lie, featuring Christine Byrd’s ethereal vocals.  After a lot of slower tracks, Undoing zips along on some processed drums and guitar rumbles, as does Absorbed In Light.

A more optimistic-sounding album than the last few, with so many epics and 13 tracks over 72 minutes it’s a lot to take in. While the tracks here are undeniably well put together you miss some of the subtleties of previous albums Universalis and Silencia.  For the post-rock fan, it’s a bit like eating all of your favourite food at the same time.

Procession / Love In The Void