Avril Lavigne and Spandau Ballet are not exactly the acts that will come to mind when you listen to Hypophora.
The Cornish alt-rockers have been likened to a mash-up of Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Foo Fighters – but we all love a guilty pleasure from time to time.
Recently releasing their debut album ‘Douse’ via Easy Action Recordings: Zen Ten, the band’s album was inspired by Seattle grunge, 90’s punk funk and 2000s post-hardcore with hard-hitting riffs, melodic guitar and anthemic vocals.
Following their album release and amidst their UK tour dates with Toska, the band spilled their musical secrets with us sharing their top 5 guilty pleasures.
Katie McConnell (Vocals): Kelly Clarkson – Behind These Hazel Eyes
I don’t deny that I LOVE this track. Kelly Clarkson has an incredible voice. I’ve just checked that she has songwriting credits for this track so I’ve got some respect for her for sure. This has a lot of nostalgic meaning for me – it takes me back to being in the back of a 4×4 at around 8 years old, belting out this absolutely bangin’ chorus.
Karum Cooper (Guitar): Spandau Ballet – Gold
The absolute necessity of 80’s pop cuisine. The verse (primarily the piano-led chord progression) is what takes the cake on this track for me. Such a moody yet almost eerily melancholic vibe creates a chilling musical bed for Tony Hadley’s iconic vocal to lay upon. This rips into that legendary feel-good sing-along chorus that we all know and love. I’m a big fan of 80’s music and though I couldn’t tell you any other Spandau tracks, this one absolutely slaps the feels though. Every. Single. Time.
Lewis Pilcher (Bass): Avril Lavigne – Hello Kitty
Despite the somewhat questionable stereotypes in the music video, the vocal inflections and bends give a satisfying minor feel to the lead sung melody, and the out-of-nowhere, dubstep-esque chorus is always embarrassingly satisfying, time after time. The slightly more stripped back bridge also adds a nice change of pace to the overall feel of the song!
James Farmer (Drums): Pendulum – The Fountain
Another case for nostalgia here. Pendulum were one of the first bands I ever fully got into, the first gig I ever went to was Pendulum when I was about 11. This one brings back a lot of memories of trying to get through lessons with a sneaky earphone in! As a band, they helped introduce me to others, like when they had In Flames feature on a track. This track, in particular, introduced me to Steven Wilson of Porcupine Tree, a band that has really influenced me since.
Full Band: Pierce The Veil – Caraphernelia
A 2010’s emo staple really… let’s be honest. As ½ of the band didn’t grow up together, Lewis was knee deep in his Metallica/Megadeth phase during this period of Katie/Karum/James’ musical journey and so he can’t really relate to the how iconic this tune was. We still maintain though, this is an absolute BOP. Vic Fuentes’ vocals (although rather whiny at times) carry one of the most iconic chorus melodies in this vein of alt music EVER, then you’ve got Jeremy McKinnon powering through on the harsh vocals, Mike Fuentes killing it with the D beats and of course that slick ass, funky, jazzy keyboard outro. All in all, between the three of us, we’ve probably rinsed this song a good few hundred times!
You can stream Hypophora’s new album ‘Douse’ via Spotify below: