Toronto natives Hooded Fang are not shy when it comes to their influences. Drawing on artists such as The Sonics, The Monks, and The Seeds (and dozens of other bands who don’t have the word “The” in front of their names), these lo-fi indie rock graduates push past reverence into some murky sense of musical obsession. On their latest record Gravez, the band slides straight into the arteries of their garage rock predecessors and manage to create something absolutely familiar but still wholly unique. And with so many bands in the past few years attempting their own sort of garage revival, the fact that Hooded Fang are able to successfully stand apart from their peers is a testament to their ability to effectively direct their own varied influences while also paying respectful homage to them. It’s a fine balance that the band has come to perfect over the course of their tenure together.
Recently, the band got together for Beats Per Minute to talk about some of the records which have influenced the often zig-zagging course of Hooded Fang. Each member picked one record to talk about, and their choices range from the gospel influenced blues of Washington Phillips to the eccentric pop of Deerhoof, and on to the funk and pop rhythms of ESG—also of note are the improvisational rock tendencies of Jerry Granelli, as well as the slanted rock of The Squids. Check out the band’s reasons for including these records below in the latest installment of our On Deck series.
D.L. = Daniel Lee
L.H. = Lane Halley
A.A. = April Aliermo
D.M. = D.Alex Meeks
The Squids – Frankie
I found this band randomly on my friend Jesse Dean’s Facebook. Jesse knows this guy, Raff McMahan I believe his name is. Raff lives in Calgary. These are awesome songs and the recordings are perfect for what the music is. I wanna hear a full album of this. So far I have just been replaying the 4 songs on the bandcamp. Is this 100 words yet? (D.L.)
Jerry Granelli – V16
I think I listened to this record everyday back in 2003. It was my alarm. I would wake up this onslaught of a record and I would have no choice but forget my dreams and enter their sonic wasteland. A lot of this record consists of group improvisation and spontaneous composition with a rock aesthetic. At the time it was like magic. I couldn’t figure out how they were making this music together. It was like they were one monster with drums for brains and guitars for guns. (L.H.)
Washington Phillips – Denomination Blues
A great deal is received and lost, never to recuperate or even glimpse, for the machinery of the world is much too complex for the simplicity of men. It is true! Evidently Washington Phillips was a simple man. He sang in light of it, sanctified gospel with the sweetest of voices and mysterious accompaniment on an instrument now unknown, a music box of earnest goodness. He may have been blind; indeed we all may be blind. Education is alright; I will tell you before you start: before you educate the head, try to educate the heart. The word is yes. (D.M.)
ESG – A South Bronx Story
These gals are rad! Their grooves are minimal and perfect. Perfect for cooking to. Perfect for drinking to. Perfect for making out to. Perfect for everything, really. Every instrument is so steady and hypnotizing, with touches of suave. I like playing music with my guys, but I’m not gonna lie, I am jealous of these gals. Sometimes I wish Daniel, Lane and D.Alex were just actually my real sisters. Besides that, if you want to make yourself feel empowered and cool, just put ESG on and blast that shit. (A.A.)
Deerhoof – Offend Maggie
After having listened to pretty much just jazz music during my music degree, hearing this for the first time got me excited about music again. It was fun rock and roll music created in an intelligent way. I think they use some classical composing strategies. There is a lot to listen to on this record. It should be noted by everyone that they released a single via sheet music long before Beck did his sheet music album. Credit where credit is due. (L.H.)
Hooded Fang’s latest record Gravez is out now via Full Time Hobby.
