English and Guitar

Introductory Essay by Professor G. Sinclair

“He had nothing but distractions / though he swore that he was bored.” This contradictory line kicks off the chorus to “He Had the Passion”, but could also serve as a summary of the hucksters, grifters, lovers and addicts that populate the story songs of English and Guitar. The record connects the tales of disaffected software salesmen, opiate casualties and UFO enthusiasts until, after a few listens, I began to wonder if each of these American archetypes aren’t actually the same thing. Can we possibly be a country of delusional pragmatists? 

As this dispiriting decade comes to a close, I struggle to reconcile the highs and lows of America. We are a nation whose institutions seem to be at once completely broken yet filled with the promise of revolutionary change. It takes an album like English and Guitar--one bursting with warm humor and hot tears--to pull all my feelings together. 

Take the album’s title track. Written in response to the president’s tweet telling congresswomen of color to “go back” to countries they were not born in, singer Anand Balasubrahmanyan reflects on his experience as a community organizer and the power of music to bring people together. Beginning with a single singer, the song builds as the voices of other Seattle artists join the melody until it swells to an ebullient crescendo amidst dark times. Its an ode to the bittersweet reality that a person can build community by sharing how they have been told they don’t belong.

For longtime fans, I’m sure this all sounds too serious for a band best known for their comedic timing. Rest assured--there is so much joy in this record. The Molly Michal assisted duet “Born in Kentucky” uses the sugary template of 60s pop to explore the tension of finding time for work and new love in the on-demand era. “That conference call won’t lead itself at 9:00,” the featured lovers/account managers banter. I smile everytime the duel narrators describe the morning after with the lines “at the break of dawn, we’re breaking bread / and the bourbon that stirred me is breaking glass in my head.”

English and Guitar is filled with the kind of off-kilter moments that tip music enthusiasts into full blown obsessives. It starts with a Sound-of-Music-esque overture written by I Want More, I Want Less composer Christopher Day that rewards re-listening by containing melodic snippets from the album's 11 songs. Loose-limbed jams pop up in unexpected places. There are rowdy acoustic guitar solos.

Listening to the album, I get a palpable sense of an experienced band having a blast. According to their press materials, Hollow Bodies workshopped the songs at both rock and improv clubs around their adopted hometown of Seattle, WA, to sharpen their musicianship and sense of humor. Balasubrahmanyan’s lyrics were further inspired by his role on the writing staff of cult comedy-gameshow, The Future is Zero. On the show, he wrote satirical segments, including a game called “How Much Money Do You Have Right Now?” where the richest contestant won without needing to achieve anything.  

Fluent in several strains of rock, Hollow Bodies have grown into experts of choosing the genre that matches the messages of each song on their third album. On “Counting My Days” guitarist Chris Dewar deploys riffs that recall the observational brit pop of Parklife-era Blur to look at a software salesman who “sells solutions” for everything but his own loneliness. The heavy power pop rush of drummer Dominic Cortese drives “He Had the Passion,” which depicts scenes from the life of a forgotten opioid addict’s journey to becoming a statistic. And, of course, there’s “Mixed,” which channels the inward-looking atmosphere of shoegaze to ask listeners to reflect on how they define the mixed race family of singer Anand Balasubrahmanyan.

Of all the stories on the album, the one I keep returning to is found in lead single “Forest Flight.” The lyrics portray snippets of conversation from a family preparing for a funeral. They ask questions that are simultaneously banal and profound -- “urn or coffin?” and “do you have sunscreen on?” -- painting an empathetic portrait of how grief both connects and maps the distances that separate us. 

I leave the album with these contradictions swirling between my ears: that shared pain can bring relief, that anxiety feeds the roots of both love and hate, and that the only difference between a visionary and a scam artist is fate  And who better to convey this sense of emptiness in a fully realized thought than a band named Hollow Bodies?

Liner Notes

English and Guitar Credits

Hollow Bodies are: Anand Balasubrahmanyan (Vocals, Guitar), Chris Dewar (Lead Guitar, Bass, Keyboards, Mandolin), Dominic Cortese (Drums & Aux Percussion)

Recorded and mixed by Graig Markel at the Recovery Room

Mastered by Ed Brooks at Resonant Mastering

Overture composed by Christopher Day

Additional vocals from Molly Michal on tracks 4 & 5

Additional vocals from Christopher Day on tracks 3 & 4

Album art by Nick Shively (https://www.nickshively.com/)

Poster art and “Wiggle Bodies” icons by Meagan DeGrand

Special Thanks to Margaret Erickson for letting the band practice extremely loud music in her attic

Lyrics and full liner notes: bit.ly/2ZEfHRK