His His – Good Gold Cassette Review

What does His His sound like?

Listening to a well-loved cassette of an indie movie soundtrack like Garden State, Juno or a Michael Gondry movie.

The review of ‘Good Gold Cassette’ by His His

Aidan Belo under his solo project His His continues to create warm, syrupy, golden-hour indie folk. His new EP ‘Good Gold Cassette’ is a beautiful tribute to electro-acoustic folk music. His His borders onto something more indie rock and alt-country at times to keep the tones and feelings interesting. Dewy melancholy seeps out of each note and chord.

The EP is structured like we’re playing a cassette tape in our apartment. The opening piece ‘Sirens from an Apartment Bedroom’ does exactly what it says on the tin. From there the punchy ‘Get-Go’ takes charge. The uptempo, electric guitar lead and tight structure act like a get ready with me track for the indie filmmaker. In fact, this entire EP is an indie movie soundtrack wet dream – but especially with this track. In and out in two minutes, it makes a great impression. The lofi bedroom folk of ‘My Friend Wants to be a Freemason’ has an endearing muddy sludge to it. The in-room hiss, tiny vocal production and eye-rolling tumble of the guitars and drums give it a rustic cynicism.

The jangly, cymbal forward drudge of ‘Good Gold’ emphasises the cassette effects that run throughout the entire EP. The track reminds me of a cross between very early Beck and retro production values 60s psych-folk artists would enjoy. There is the slightest tape warping and audio peaking across the EP to emulate a well-loved and worn cassette tape. It allows tracks like ‘Good Gold’ to shine with its twangy upper string embellishments and become audio sun rays of warmth. Elsewhere the criminally short interlude ‘Na Madrugada (At Dawn)’ sounds ported from a 60s folk star’s rediscovered home recordings. The production brings back that nostalgic sound without compromising on audio quality as His His smoothes out the peaks and warps to make it subtler yet effective.

The final two tracks on the EP are the longest. ‘Cabra’ is a sublime alt-country track. The lightest of acoustic guitar and brushed percussion glitter and hue in the background. His His’ vocals are softer and reflective as the electric guitar bends and twists like a Hawaiian Western. It is a beautiful track and a personal highlight. ‘Outside’ then brings us full circle with a lofi indie sunbeam. Straddling optimistic rustic production with sludgier electric guitar fuzz, it ends the release with a breath of fresh air whilst sounding like it’s drowned in its own sound.

His His has perfected this kind of retro vintage indie folk sound over the years. It sounds like the outskirts of Toronto, Ontario and the grassroots art scene from that corner of the globe. Everything screams lethargy whilst balancing optimism and wonder, which can be difficult to pull off sincerely. His His does it with aplomb on this short but sweet EP. If anyone is casting for a gritty indie dramedy, listen to this!

Recommended track: Cabra

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