Author: Max Slade
Header image: Bambi Album Cover
The A.V. Club are notable for a lot of the content they produce on YouTube, showing behind the scenes content from new movies, music, and more. However, the peak of their genius, in my opinion, comes in the form of “A.V. Undercover,” a show in which a list of a wide range of songs is given to a wide range of artists, who are forced to choose one they will cover. They have made eight seasons of the show, exposing me to several of my current favorite artists in the process, such as Mac Demarco, Ben Folds, and Hippo Campus–my personal favorite. One day while perusing A.V.’s channel, I impulsively clicked on their cover of “Don’t Bring Me Down” by Electric Light Orchestra. What a great decision that was. Their cover was filled with energy and the band’s chemistry was evident in seconds.
After my rather lucky discovery of Hippo Campus, I immediately dove into their discography. Listening to songs like “Violet,” “Suicide Saturday,” and “South,” made me fall instantly with the band. Since then I’ve tracked their every move, waiting for new music and a concert I was able to attend.
The band, formed in 2013, consists of Jake Luppen (lead vocal/guitar), Nathan Stocker (lead guitar/vocals), Zach Sutton (bass), and Whistler Isaiah Allen (drums/vocals). They burst onto the indie scene in 2015 with theirBashful Creatures EP, following it with performances at SXSW, Lollapalooza, and others. After building a considerable following through festival performances and opening for larger acts.
After Bashful Creatures came the South EP, giving the young band further exposure and recognition by large publications. Following South, the band moved forward with their debut album, Landmark.This album showed a clear development in both their production and writing abilities. “Epitaph” is a clear example of this, as the song includes unique vocoder effects and guitar-driven catchiness.
Hippo Campus developed their sound to a new extent in their latest album, Bambi, which is filled with drum machine sounds and synth parts unique to them. Hearing this live will be a fantastic experience, as no instrumentation like it has been present on previous releases. It has been a truly amazing experience watching Hippo Campus’ rise since their Electric Light Orchestra cover, and I look forward to seeing them “all grown up.”
Hippo Campus are performing at Neptune Theatre on February 6th, beginning at 8:00 PM. Get your tickets while you can!
Find them on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
MAX SLADE | The hippocampus is a small organ located within the brain’s medial temporal lobe and forms an important part of the limbic system, the region that regulates emotions. The hippocampus is associated mainly with memory, in particular long-term memory. The organ also plays an important role in spatial navigation. | KXSU Music Reporter