In our current climate of constant climactic events where it seems like we have yet to process crucial matters before ten more join the fray, it can feel impossible to resolve our feelings on issues and enact real change on them. We constantly find ourselves at seemingly impassable crossroads that just lead to more impassable crossroads. More specifically, when it comes to societal disparity, it is all too easy to become complacent with our situations and enjoy our privileges in relative comfort while also recognizing that disparity and still yearning to make a difference. These sensibilities seem to ring true as well for one Adam Hooks and his Huckleberries on their new single, “Babylon Is For Lovers”.
Today Glide is excited to offer an exclusive premiere of the track.
Returning fans of Hooks & The Huckleberries and newcomers alike will be over the moon with this new track, a true-blue DIY Americana and roots rock cut exploding with personality, sensibility, and relatability detailing the personal struggles of an everyday man. Preceding the release of their second full length album entitled “For the Love of Whatever”, the band enlisted all-star help in one Matt Pence (Jason Isbell, Nikki Lane, The Breeders) for the album’s recording and production in Pence’s Echo Lab studios in Denton, TX. The original four-piece consisting of Adam Hooks (vox, acoustic), Joshua Lee (lead), Dustin Hoag (drums), and Ryan Martino (bass, harmonies) is also rounded out with additional harmonies and keys from Parker Twomey, highlighting the cowpunk underbelly with softer strings and organ sections. Joshua’s soaring guitar leads recite country lines with a punk rock timbre, serving as an excellent counterpoint to Adam’s social and personal commentary on subjects such as American excess, personal vices, and white privilege and indifference. Dustin and Ryan in the rhythm section expertly hold it down the entire way through, only dancing around the melody in brief moments of measured creativity. Make no mistake – this is a very polished group to start with, only further enhanced with Pence’s studio magic.
While the lessons and musings throughout the tune are all highly meaningful for most folks out there, the chorus brings to light the main point: “What would I do without?” I sat on these words throughout writing this, mostly coming to the same conclusion as Adam: “Nothing.” Life throws all sorts of mess at you constantly, some good and some bad, but living is all about taking what you have and making something from nothing. It is also about battling that “nothing” of complacency, fighting daily boredom and ennui and finding that inspiration to get up and do something meaningful for yourself and for those around you within reach. At least, that’s how this song reached me, and I’m sure it will reach you, too, if you give it a shot. Look forward to more to come from this group as they get closer to releasing that second album – in the meantime, you can stream “Babylon Is For Lovers” and more from Hooks & The Huckleberries and contemplate what you would do without.
Listen to the song and read our chat with the band below…
In respect to your roots in punk music and DIY culture, what elements of that ethos do you find most seamlessly transfer over to the scene you find yourself in currently, and what, if anything, did you leave behind?
Both punk rock and country music are distilled down to the same elements: three chords and the truth. We approach music and songwriting with the same energy and integrity; it’s just coming from a more mature and focused place now. The only things we left behind in the transition were the self-destruction and nihilism that no longer served the vision we had for the future.
As a follow-up, punk legend Mike Watt often refuses to tag his music with genres, feeling them to be too limiting. Have you found yourself being placed in boxes that you yourself didn’t pack? What stigmas and challenges, if any, did you face “switching” from punk to Americana?
I don’t think any artist likes being pigeonholed, but I really don’t care what genre you label our music under, as long as you actually give it a listen (“I wanna be stereotyped. I wanna be classified!”). When starting Hooks & the Huckleberries, I think I was expecting more of a culture shock and backlash from fans. However, as it turns out, there’s a pretty big movement of aging punks picking up acoustic guitars and re-envisioning how they want their message to be heard and who they want it to be heard by. We’re just another casualty of the “Punk Rock to Americana Pipeline”!
What inspired the title of this track, “Babylon Is For Lovers”? Given the subject matter of the track, it makes me think of the reggae cultural context, but it’s certainly used in broad senses these days.
Yes! It is a direct reference to reggae culture. When I wrote this song, my friend Daniel (RIP) had just returned from an extensive trip to Jamaica and brought back with him so much incredible modern reggae and dancehall music that had previously flown under my radar. Artists like Kabaka Pyramid, Vybz Kartel, Chronixx, and Jah Vinci. At that time, I was fighting through the end stages of a years-long opioid addiction and tackling my internal apathy. Reggae music’s message of conscious and healthy living helped influence and produce the changes I needed. I became obsessed with the concept of Modern America as Babylon and our codependent culture of excess, thus the song “Babylon Is For Lovers” was born.
What creative ideas formed and doors opened while working with Matt Pence?
We entered Echo Lab studio with the belief that the songs we had prepared were in their final forms. Matt Pence possesses an amazing ability to cut through the noise and uncover the song’s true essence, much like a sculptor shaping a block of stone into a statue. He challenged us to leave our preconceptions at the door and to be open to allowing the songs to evolve naturally into what they were meant to be. The end result was an incredibly honest and beautiful record that we wouldn’t have achieved without his guidance. This experience stands out as one of the most rewarding in our creative lives, and we look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with him again in the future.
What’s next for you musically? Where can people see/hear you, live or on record?
A lot of touring, festivals, writing, and recording. We’re road dogs and can’t stand to be idle, so keep an eye on our schedule and come hang with us at a show sometime! We’re bound to be in your neck of the woods soon. Until then, we love y’all. Thank you for listening.
