IN REVIEW: Hey Rosetta! - "Second Sight"

There's a telling lyrical passage that stuck out to me upon listening to Newfoundland-based indie stalwarts Hey Rosetta's third full-length LP. During the uplifting, depression-battling anthem Cathedral Bells, singer Tim Baker exclaims, "the road is lit and I'm going home". It comes near the tail end of the album's most thrilling section of songs, during which the seven-piece (plus additional hands on deck for extra orchestration) take a formidable musical journey through several genres and moods. After exploring the arena-sized farthest reaches of Coldplay, the worldly rhythms of Vampire Weekend and the zealous, choral flourishes of Arcade Fire among others, it's the comfort of home that drives the group down the album's (pun intended, I suppose) home stretch.

Long before we get to that point, however, we're treated to some of the band's most interesting material to date. The album starts with current single Soft Offering (for the Oft Suffering) and runs through some massively appealing melodies, culminating in the earworm-inducing, supersized Dream. What follows is a slower, more introspective pair of tracks in What Arrows and Promise; they're not bad songs, but they do kill the momentum with their tempos and tendencies to drag on just a bit (they're a shade under twelve minutes combined).

Thankfully, the album's midsection finds Hey Rosetta! at their most adventurous, bombastic and lively; the groovy, methodical Kid Gloves, the fiery and percussive Neon Beyond, the nimble and enticing Kintsukuroi and the aforementioned Cathedral Bells run the gamut in seventeen minutes, laying bare all of this incredibly talented group's strengths. It also sets the table for even more thrills in the slow burning dirge turned hopeful ballad Alcaltraz, the soulful kitchen party atmosphere of Harriet (which contains the album's biggest payoff), and the hymnal, heartbreaking requiem Trish's Song.

As musically restless as Second Sight tends to be, it also feels like a natural progression for a band that's already shown plenty of willingness to experiment. If they continue to remind predominantly of the three other bands I've already mentioned previously, they're to be commended for only gleaning the positive elements of those bands' influences. It may sound like Coldplay, Vampire Weekend or Arcade Fire, but it's Coldplay without the inflated sense of importance, Vampire Weekend without the forced book smarts, and Arcade Fire without the heavy-handed pretensions. It's the earnestness and honesty that make Second Sight, and Hey Rosetta!, so easy to root for; this album is the sound of a band that, for all the national adulation they've received (two Polaris nominations and, if the quality of this record is any indication, counting), and for all the global-minded inspirations that creep into their core sound, they still haven't forgotten where they came from.

October 21, 2014 • Sonic/Warner

Highlights Soft Offering (for the Oft Suffering) • Cathedral Bells • Harriet

Year in Rock 2025

Alright, I've got some explaining to do. By now anyone who's visited this blog is well aware of how infrequently I've used this space in recent years; aside from the occasional fertile year of content, I really haven't posted all that often over the last five years or so. There are many reasons for this, which have already been outlined in previous apology posts; but, essentially, it boils down to my own laziness and the cold reality that blogs are, like Refused (again), fucking dead. So, I wouldn't hold my breath for a triumphant return to reviews, or even semi-regular posts, but: a) I feel like Year in Rock posts have always belonged here and, even though I've experimented with different methods of presentation recently and been satisfied, the "blink and you missed it" unveiling via Facebook stories this year was perhaps ultimately a disservice to the records I lauded. After all, cramming the list into short videos isn't too far off from ju...

Year in Rock 2013 Nominee: Arctic Monkeys

ARCTIC MONKEYS Do I Wanna Know? From: AM Released: September 10 That Year in Rock 2012's Single of the Year R U Mine? ended up on this album is pleasing, and it fits the motif well enough. But R U Mine? isn't what makes Arctic Monkeys' fifth album an Album of the Year contender. Sweaty, sultry and pulsing with sexual energy, AM is the kind of record that's just as effective whether you're chilling out after a long day, staring into a mirror prepping yourself for a late night clubbing session or setting the mood for some escapades in the boudoir.

Year in Rock 2023: Album of the Year #10-1

Now we're getting somewhere; the top ten, where there are no duds or mids, only bangers. Also, no more teasing it out; let's wrap this up! What I've learned this year from my ten faves this year is that it is indeed still possible for a dude approaching his fifties to more or less stay up to date on the new school. Of course, there are some listed here that got a boost from playing tribute to the old school, but there is an undercurrent happening in rock that points to the future. But, I'm getting ahead of myself; here come the champs. 10 MILITARIE GUN Life Under the Gun June 23, 2023 • Loma Vista Highlights Very High Will Logic Never Fucked Up Once Rising from the ranks of the still-potent L.A. hardcore scene, the debut record from Militarie Gun (following a trio of EPs) bears a dash of polish that's expected with backing from a larger label; the tension and energy remain, though, resulting in one of the catchiest hardcore albums I can think of in recent years. 9 ...

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