In my review of Red River Hog’s recent single ‘Country Ham & Eggs’, I anticipated that their EP Hello My Name Is would be closer to Half Man Half Biscuit than The Slim Shady. The first five seconds of first track ‘Rosemary’ sound like Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Foxy Lady’, which I find impossible to listen to without imagining a gurning Dana Carvey. Given the food-based focus of their previous single, is ‘Rosemary’ in fact a tribute to a dinner carvery? And, if you’re still reading this, are you ashamed that you just smiled? You shouldn’t be. Smiling is good for you.
To answer my first question: any impression that ‘Rosemary’ is about the delicious herb is quickly dispelled by the lyrical content. “I wrote down my stupid feelings,” frontman Peter Richard Adams declares, echoing his own words via a Tannoy (probably). I’m also sensing a hint of Weezer and enjoying the distinct flavour of The Kinks here. So far, so nourishing.
‘Available Fun’ starts like Guillemots’ ‘Trains to Brazil’ and soon becomes a pleasingly ramshackle bop in the manner of ‘Bohemian Like You’ by The Dandy Warhols. I’d say it’s unlikely to be co-opted by a mobile phone company but it’s probably a good shout for the next series of The Inbetweeners – the soundtrack to a scene of the four lads in a crap car or the background din while Jay does something unspeakable in his room.
One imagines that Red River Hog are massive Bruce Springsteen fans, so it might seem counterintuitive to write a song called ‘Promise Not To Run’. However, the track certainly has the heft and command of The Boss, and it’s also notable for the pronunciation of the word ‘theatre’, which makes His Majesty The King seem as posh as a Pot Noodle. The last course on the EP menu is, again counterintuitively, the aforementioned ‘Country Ham & Eggs’. In relation to this meal in its own right, I previously mentioned The Futureheads, and the passage of time has supplied no reason to deviate from this association. Listening to it just now, I also heard a similarity to Thomas Newman’s American Beauty piece ‘Any Other Name’.
Instead of filming plastic bags in the wind or whatever it is you do with your time, may I suggest that you purchase Hello My Name Is forthwith. The lads from Exeter are being excellent again. Excellent!
Hello My Name Is is out now via Golden Mare Recording Co.
