REVIEW: The Hydrothermal Vents – ‘Secrets Of The Deep!’

Artist: The Hydrothermal Vents
Album: Secrets Of The Deep!
Genre: Rock, New Wave

John Tielli and Tessa Kautzman make up the Montreal-based duo known as The Hydrothermal Vents, an experimental pop rock act inspired by the works of David Attenborough and all things oceanic. Their newest 9-track effort, Secrets Of The Deep!, as a whole, is unlike anything you’ve ever heard but it takes leads here and there from a wide assortment of genre pioneers such as Talking Heads, The B-52s and The Police as well as newer acts in the vein of Los Campesinos! Melding elements of whimsical indie-pop, post-punk, new wave, and dream pop, The Hydrothermal Vents’ sound is hard to pin down, but certainly makes for an interesting and fully dynamic listening experience.

From the very first moments of SOTD! in opener “Inside A Movie,” you’re welcomed into the world of THV with their signature sound: dual vocal melodies, quirky instrumentation, and unique arrangements that pull you in to the depths of their creations.

While this overall theme remains throughout the entirety of the effort, the individual tracks all contain lives of their own. The second track, “Do The Vent,” for example, is primarily an instrumental cut that sounds like a fun jam from The Knack. You’ll want to dance to it, and if you’re old enough, it’ll likely take you back to a wondrous time. If you’re too young to have lived through the ’70s like myself, the song will serve as something akin to a replica of a relic that may at least transport you back to your youth when your parents spun similar records to Get The Knack.

One of my favorite elements of this record as a whole are the bass lines. They’re simple in nature but they really drive nearly every track with a rhythm you’ll most definitely get lost within. No matter the layers of instrumentation on any given effort, the bass really shines through and guides you along. When you add Tielli and Kautzman’s perfectly complementing vocals, synth additions, and various percussion elements to the mix, you get 9 different songs that keep you hooked with simultaneous consistency and variation.

Secrets Of The Deep! balances the upbeat and the slightly more solemn perfectly with tracks like “Shark!” which provides a fun, poppy feel and sunny vibes, and “Hydrothermal Vents” (my favorite track) which boasts a slower, more theatrical dark wave sound reminiscent of acts like Siouxsie and the Banshees. This juxtaposition of light and dark makes for a great overall feel to the album and shows the scope that THV are working within. These are elements that make this album both fun and exciting and I’m anxious to see how they incorporate an evolved version of these aspects into their next release.

SCORE: 7.8/10
Review written by Brian Lion — (Follow him on Twitter)

Brian Leak
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