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| Haymaker: The New Grunge Sound |
A Side
October 18, 2009 |
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There is one place above all others when you think of grunge music - Seattle.
The city that gave us some of the most influential and successful bands of the 90’s is still seen by many as a music Mecca. It housed some of the greatest grunge bands of all time. The most obvious example is Nirvana, but Soundgarden and Pearl Jam both claim residency in the city. With a new batch of musicians in the making, Seattle continues to propagate this seminal musical genre. Naturally, this famous heritage has given rise to more than one identikit grunge band.
However, a band is bucking this trend, taking the grunge genre and honing it to bring people a fresh new sound. They’re called Haymaker. The band’s two original members, Chris Wright and Lance Bachler, met at school and have been writing and playing music for 16 years. Moving to Seattle in 2004, the band released their debut self-titled album in 2005. Although it didn’t bring them huge accolades, it is a very strong offering which positioned the group as one of the top grunge bands and hottest acts in the area.
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It only seems appropriate to try and compare this group to one of the famous grunge bands from the era. With their rock & roll guitars and gritty vocals, it would be convenient to say that Haymaker sounds like Pearl Jam. The problem is that this comparison, although hugely complimentary, is a little bit unfair to the band. Their sound is definitely not confined to one genre. Jumping from folk-inspired acoustics to full-on rock ballads, they are a band that’s very comfortable mixing it up. As with most grunge bands, their sound lends itself better to smaller, more intimate venues. This, combined with their hectic gigging schedule, has left Haymaker with a chunky acoustic set list. Sweet acoustics combined with witty lyrics and great guitar solos typify their songs.
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My favorite track so far is Milky Fly, a throwback to the 90’s and a super-cool rock and roll rollercoaster with great songwriting and crunchy riffs. Haymaker is a band who is easy to like and very, very hard to find. They only have 16 Facebook friends! Even my mum has more contacts than that. But you can check out some of their early stuff on their website. Currently working on new material and hoping to bring out an album by the end of this year or early next, Haymaker is definitely on the way to graduating from their years on the Seattle circuit, and ready to take their distinctive grunge sound to the world, just like many of their brethren who came before.
Rating: 3/5
- James “Scotty’ Crawford
Links:
www.haymaker.tv
www.myspace.com/haymakerseattle
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