{"title":"Hookworms","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHookworms is an indie rock band hailing from Leeds, UK. Known for their unique sound and energetic performances, they have gained a dedicated following over the years.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHowever, on October 31, 2018, the band shocked fans by announcing their split. This decision came after serious allegations of sexual and mental abuse were made against the band's frontman. The news left many disappointed and saddened by the turn of events.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDespite this unfortunate ending to their journey as a band, Hookworms' music continues to resonate with listeners around the world. Their legacy in the indie rock scene remains intact, showcasing their talent and creativity that captivated audiences throughout their career.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"hookworms","title":"Hookworms","description":"\u003cp\u003eGringo and Faux Discx to release a expanded version of Hookworms debut EP on CD. A reissue of a 7 track expanded version of Hookworms 2011 self-titled debut EP off the back of two critically acclaimed albums - 2013's Pearl Mystic and 2014's The Hum is both a marker from where Leeds 5 piece have subsequently hurtled forwards from, but also a document and proof of the undeniable character that they've never allowed to waver even as all around them has changed. The EP contains the first tracks the group ever recorded in vocalist and producer MJ's original Suburban Home Studio, with the group just a handful of local shows into their existence - one such show, supporting Sun Araw lead to its original release. \"It was a very exciting time for us,\" bassist MB recalls. \"MJ having his first studio meant we'd gone from practicing in a tiny basement and receiving noise complaints to having a place where we could do what we wanted. We played with Sun Araw just as we were finishing the EP and Cameron Stallones enjoyed our set and asked to hear any recordings - then subsequently released it on cassette.\" Hookworms have long since evolved into a mighty beast, live able to fill cavernous warehouses with a vitriolic form of kosmiche, as when headlining Liverpool Psych Fest, or when supporting fuzzy legends Slowdive during their 2014 comeback. Hookworms as a listen though already has in place several of the traits that have helped elevate them - the strutting bass and four note repetition of Teen Dreams is pure Modern Lovers, mining the group's 60's garage and proto-punk influences and mixing them with a caustic modernity. It's the only track that still makes an occasional appearance live; another highlight is the rolling bass thunder of I Have Some Business Out West crackles with the energy of an approaching storm: \"Our gear wasn't as good back then so we did quite a bit of re-amping and post-production,\" MB comments. \"The EP was basically a playground for experimentation with a bunch of new guitar pedals we'd recently acquired.\" In addition, the reissue comes with additional early and rare recordings - the drone heavy initial version of Form and Function, which would appear on a split 7\" alongside Nottingham-based peers Kogumaza, plus the swaggering rumbles of The Correspondent - which appeared on 2012 Sonic Cathedral compilation Psych For Sore Eyes. The former is a premonition of phase two of the band, foreshadowing the heavier, dense sound around Pearl Mystic; the latter still sounds like a wonderful outlier - which says something for a band whose boundaries have forever stretched towards the horizon. MJ would also like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for all the support, help and donations he has received after his studio in Leeds was flooded over Christmas. The band had been working on new material at Suburban Home Studios prior to the flood.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gringo","offers":[{"title":"CD.","offer_id":50402288795979,"sku":"398190","price":5.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/e763c678-739d-4c60-ba48-ac86977f8fca_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726539231"},{"product_id":"pearl-mystic-1","title":"Pearl Mystic","description":"\u003cp\u003eOften bracketed among the latest wave of psychedelic rock, this tag is somewhat of a misnomer for a band whose use of repetition and reverb is not to open the third dimension or for some sort of flower-power escapism. Instead the reel feels cathartic, each fresh revolution of the loop a confrontation between the band and themes of depression, loss and anger -subjects close to the heart of the group’s vocalist MJ (“no enigma; we just don’t use our full names, we’ve no interest in being celebrities.”) \u003ci\u003e Pearl Mystic\u003c\/i\u003e is an absolutely thunderous statement of intent for Hookworms after a portentous couple of years of live shows and limited releases. Live and on record, like Spaceman 3, they were pointedly subvert the tripped out sound environments of psychedelia with a darkly malevolent punk menace; unlike J.Spaceman et al, there’s no chemical assistance, these concepts andfeelings come with clarity, and hit all the harder for it. The LP’s themes focus on a deeply personal narrative surrounding a lost relationship and a battle with depression that at its worst brought about, as MJ, puts it “a half-hearted suicide attempt”. Thus songs like \u003ci\u003eAway \/ Towards\u003c\/i\u003e (a finer opening to an album you couldn’t hope to hear) possess a gargantuan build-and-release infectious energy that juxtaposes with a subtext of a bi-polar approach to coping with loss. \u003ci\u003ePreservation\u003c\/i\u003e, too, is in keeping with the group’s live shows, though deals with existentialism, whilst several Raymond Carver influences are scattered in and among the bold textures of sound. \u003ci\u003eIn Our Time\u003c\/i\u003e is perhaps the closest thing to escapism on the LP, about a hill MJ would cycle up near Otley in Yorkshire after the end of his relationship,because it possessed his favourite view in the world. \u003ci\u003eSince We Had Changed\u003c\/i\u003e meanwhile is almost mantra-like in its constancy, new percussive elements joining those already on the record, whilst \u003ci\u003eWhat We Talk About\u003c\/i\u003e returns full circle to the first track’s themes of depression, and emerges from mixed field recordings including a backwards taping of a Hare Krishna lecture played down the studio corridor.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLP - Green and White Splatter on Clear Vinyl.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gringo","offers":[{"title":"CD.","offer_id":50402289156427,"sku":"359431","price":5.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP.","offer_id":50402289287499,"sku":"359430","price":7.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/29762863-59a4-4037-a399-55da96a3b4cf_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726539258"},{"product_id":"pearl-mystic","title":"Pearl Mystic","description":"\u003cp\u003ePearl Mystic\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gringo Records","offers":[{"title":"CD.","offer_id":50402305409355,"sku":"1005889","price":5.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}]},{"product_id":"microshift","title":"Microshift","description":"\u003cp\u003eHookworms return with their first project in three years, available on 180-gram heavyweight vinyl.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eMicroshift\u003c\/i\u003e marks a seismic shift in the Leeds band's sound, dynamic, songwriting and production, whilst still bearing all the ferocious energy, intricate musicianship and bruised but beautiful song-craft of the previous releases which have quietly made them one of the UK's most revered young bands. This is the band's third studio album technically but arguably the first in which the studio has been central to its creation.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRadiant, immersive and teeming with light, but still heavy and forceful - the music on \u003ci\u003eMicroshift \u003c\/i\u003eacts as a very deliberate counter to some of the difficult topics the album's lyrics address. Death, disease, heartbreak, body image and even natural disaster are all present here but the overall effect these songs achieve is euphoric catharsis.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHookworms will be performing \u0026amp; signing instore at \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.roughtrade.com\/events\/hookworms-live-signing\"\u003eRough Trade East - Friday, 9th February\u003c\/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.roughtrade.com\/events\/bristol-hookworms-live-signing\"\u003eRough Trade Bristol - Saturday, 10th February\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCD - Spined 'mini LP' wallet and printed inner sleeve. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLP - 3mm spined outer sleeve. Black 180 Gram heavyweight vinyl. Printed inner sleeve. Download card.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLP+ - 3mm spined outer sleeve. Printed PVC outer sleeve. Black 180 Gram heavyweight vinyl. Printed inner sleeve. Download card.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Domino","offers":[{"title":"LP.","offer_id":50480500539723,"sku":"1022120","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50480500244811,"sku":"1022117","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50480500769099,"sku":"1022119","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/075896c1-07bb-4079-8767-f24bdbcbc12b_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727521923"},{"product_id":"the-hum-1","title":"The Hum","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Leeds band consisting of the mysteriously, minimistacilly, monickered MB MJ JN SS and JW release their second 'proper' album 18 months after 2013's much acclaimed 'Pearl Mystic' album. Having had releases via the Sun Ark \/ Magic Lantern, Gringo Records, and Too Pure labels they're now on Domino offshoot 'Weird World' and still recording in MJ's own Suburban Home Studio. Set the controls for the heart of a helter skelter of squalling firestorms, a throwdown of controlled chaos and blissed out float-down moments. Psychotica-delic, hypno-driven fuzz freakouts, astral adventures on grooving organ, echo-tremmed vocals and some more fuzz. Heavy thunderous psych with a touch of New York Dolls punk abandon blended with noise and melody as equal ear-food. Fierce but beautiful.LP+- Deluxe LP - 180 Gram Heavyweight Transparent vinyl with Die Cut jacket with bonus 7\" featuring two new tracks and download.LP - Non Limited version - 180 Gram Heavyweight black vinyl with Download.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Weird World","offers":[{"title":"LP.","offer_id":50492478849355,"sku":"380183","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50492481241419,"sku":"380186","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50492484649291,"sku":"382534","price":16.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/2c3f5e61-1b6d-4f2d-8933-e8d5a57c2f5b_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727692306"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/collections\/test_08a278e7_thumbnail_4096_1d9da4d9-6232-4e2c-8065-03beeed6c461.jpg?v=1726539214","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/fr\/collections\/hookworms.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}