Hum’s first album in 22 years goes beyond the average expectations of a reunion album and pushes Hum’s sound in new directions left and right. It cements their legacy further than ever before, and it just might turn out to be their masterpiece. I think many of us needed this without knowing, particularly those of us who love Hum and never imagined another album. Despite the undercurrent of melancholy in Hum’s music, that “look to the stars” hopefulness, and the lyrical explorations of when science, consciousness, and love intersect. Often times, a reunion album reminds you why you fell in love with a band in the first place, proves they’ve still got it, and helps re-establish the band as a force within an era that they had long been absent from. But in rarer cases, a reunion album cements a band’s legacy further than ever before, closing a book you might not have realized had been left open. Inlet, Hum’s first album in 22 years, is the latter. This type of heavy shoegaze/alt-rock is arguably more prevalent now than it was in the ’90s, thanks to Hum’s influence, and as good as many of Hum’s followers are, Inlet is the album that this distinct subgenre needed. Hum were maybe ahead of their time, and it’s as if they needed the world to catch up with them before they could release what may turn out to be their masterpiece.
Released June 23rd, 2020
All music written and recorded by HUM at Earth Analog and ELL.
Band Members:
Jeff Dimpsey,
Bryan St. Pere,
Matt Talbott,
Tim Lash,
The Fat Angel Sings 