Hugh Effo’s Self-Titled: An Approximate Measure of Rock

by JUSTIN CERVANTES

In an inter-mesh of math rock and classic garage punk, Hugh Effo’s self-titled record emerges as a pleasant verbiage that charms the attentive ear. The Los Angeles based band presents their first full-length record with ten bombastic tracks that wind themselves to very impressive highs.

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Hugh Effo showcases their precision with a record whose instruments sound lively and calculated. “Jelly Massage” opens the record with a scratchy guitar reeling to find a rhythm, which it not only discovers shortly thereafter, but kills for the rest of the track.

The excellent instrumentation, mainly showcased with the scratchy guitar that flares across this record, oftentimes overshadow the vocals.

Yet, it is the vocal performance of this record which harks back to the raw vintage of garage punk and rock of the 60’s and 70’s. The vocals have a noticeable echo and drag that builds the record into a constant, but fluctuating, tone. The performance, much like the instrumentation, has a considerable range from chaotic roars in “Tame” to the cool-winded performance in “Livin”

Hugh Effo’s self-titled is a great full length effort from the band. The still-young band has stuffed the roots of rock into a modern math rock shell, and made one hell of a record for it — a record that isn’t just memorabilia for the old-age of rock, but as a new fresh breath for the modern scene.

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Words by Justin Cervantes