“Interesting Friends” – Bob Hillman
Is power pop having a bit of a moment here in the mid-’20s? Some say yes. I don’t think the genre ever really goes away, just as it never really reaches any kind of mass appeal. But I don’t doubt that its current resurgence relates to some sort of collective-unconscious reaction to 21st-century pop’s relentless move into over-processed, over-compressed, committee-written, pitch-corrected, guitar-free, personality-free pap.
Note that Bob Hillman isn’t some kind of bandwagon-jumping newbie. His musical career dates back to the late ’90s, with a 10-year hiatus leading to a re-emergence in 2015. And while what he’s recorded to date, nine releases now, does not uniformly qualify as power pop, he’s got a strong sense of melody that serves him well across all his compositions, and particularly well here with the unabashed power pop of “Interesting Friends.” Brisk and instantly likable, the song’s drive is visceral yet mellowed by Hillman’s placid tone and unhurried delivery. And like all good power pop, the song is highlighted by crisp lyrical turns of phrase and gratifying melodic resolutions. As a bonus we get some pretty hot guitar work along the way.
Speaking of interesting friends, Hillman has a couple joining in here by way of longtime Elvis Costello bandmate Pete Thomas on drums and guitarist Trevor Menear, who played with Dawes on tour for 10 years. “Interesting Friends” is a track from Hillman’s new six-song EP, The King of the Bees, released in August. Check it out on Bandcamp.
