[WARNING: This review may contain hyperbole – read with caution]
Jon Hunt is the best songwriting multi-instrumentalist from That London that has ever existed. Jon Hunt’s music could be described as being part of the singer-songwriter stable. But it isn’t what you think, that’s far too throw-away. Take it from someone who, at best, throws a collection of noises together to make a facsimile of music; this singer-songwriting lark is not an easy trick to pull off successfully. Jon’s songs add to the canon of music I’m building up that show me that all the big, clever stuff I like is all fine and dandy, but not the be-all and and-all. More on that later.
To say Jon Hunt paints little pictures with words and music over 12-string guitar would be disingenuous on my part. There’s more to Jon Hunt than a bloke with an acoustic guitar playing protest songs! These are not your traditional singer-songwriter chord progressions, and Jon knows when to chuck in the odd “what chord did he just play”, or a “hang on, that was a trumpet”. Occasionally there’s an “ooh – some menace and distortion” right out of the blue!
More than once I was surprised. “What was that”? It was a loads of things. A cheekily weird discord in a keyboard riff, a liberal sprinkle of incoherent sampled chatter – a drizzle of melancholy brass over synth pads. And then there’s segueing one song into …err… a protest song, albeit one duplicitously dressed up as an instrumental into which he’s also sneaked some sound design.
Then there’s the lyrics. He’s bloody good at this. I’m not really even good at hearing lyrics! I’ll let lyricists get away with murder if the tune sounds good, and it serves the song. I cite Jon Anderson and Elizabeth Fraser as perfect examples of nonsensical lyricists who cannot put a foot wrong, no matter how much jibber and babble they make. Lyrics are a part of the whole listening music experience. But Jon Hunt is not one of these lyricists. His lyrics still stand out in the song because not only do they serve the song, perhaps the song is serving the lyric!
You might, then, think that I see this album as a work of some kind of genius. But there is this:
I’m desperately trying to avoid the cumbersome pachyderm that has crushed the sofa in our lounge. One track has more than a hint of an album named for when a baby sheep went for a snooze in the musical theatre district of NY:NY. Once I heard that I kept hearing what I interpret as influences from that one particular seventies classic progressive rock ensemble.
But I want this to be riddled with originality. I’m soooooo reluctant to even mention Genesis (DAMN) and make comparisons, because – and let me be as clear as crystal – this music really does stand out in its own right. From my own personal experience, I know how difficult it is to come up with something new and listenable and engaging, only to later realise that I’ve temporarily blinded myself to my influences, but that is inevitable. I’m only just starting to embrace the inevitability, and just hope I don’t accidentally write something for which I’ll get royally litigated at until my bum hurts. How else do I tie this all together into the inevitable question, the one I always ask – is it prog?
Well, actually some of it is, a bit. OK, there are no brain twisting polyrhythms and daft in-your-face time signatures, no Mellotron or eBow, but I’ve heard other less proggy artists thrown into that same musical dumpster. Nevertheless, there is, in a way, some genius here, just as there is in any of your favourite composers be they Paul Simon or Paul McCartney or Peter Hammill or Trent Reznor or Benny & Bjorn. The genius comes in taking influences, formats, sound palettes and all the other tricks you have acquired, either through a profound understanding of how to build music using musical theory, or through having a good ear and honed instincts, and making music that ticks the fickle and nebulous boxes of the listener. What we’re talking about is talent.
An Explosion Of Nothing has taught me something about myself. I confess to selectively analysing music, listening to the bass playing, the guitar tones, the interesting drum patterns. I’m like a sad, anoraked kid with a notebook and pen, at the end of a musical platform, waiting for the next song to arrive so I can pick out and congratulate myself on recognising a particular type of musical instrument and ticking it off in my notebook. I know I must listen less analytically, more holistically, and when I do this, I realise that the big picture here is that this is far less simple than preconceptions would suggest. I wish I had an nth of Jon’s songwriting talent. There is way more to Jon Hunt’s music than some chap knocking derivative tunes out with some good lyrics.
“So much mouth, so little to say, dressed like a rainbow, but your words come out grey” I’ve worked with people who speak like this, and now you’re reading a review that’s dangerously near that monochrome pitfall trap. If this, or any other lyrics on An Explosion Of Nothing lyric doesn’t resonate with you, and ignorance is truly bliss, I envy you!
In conclusion, with innovative sound design, great writing/lyrics, a smattering of “prog” – this is a 5-star album in a 3-star world of musical mediocrity – and I recommend that you should get a copy and see if I’m wrong.
[You can read Roger Trenwith‘s review of An Explosion Of Nothing album launch – HERE]
TRACK LISTING
01. Bait & Switch (5:19)
02. Conjure Something (4:52)
03. Resonance (2:36)
04. Lift To The Ritual (2:54)
05. Dionysus Appears Close To The A36 (5:39)
06. Engaged/Living Life In Acres (7:10)
07. So Much Mouth, So Little To Say (4:31)
08. Strawberries & Milk (Engaged II) (3:26)
09. Penultimate (5:17)
10. Wonderful Life (4:34)
Total Time – 44:35
MUSICIANS
Jon Hunt – Vocals, Electric, Acoustic & 12-String Guitars, Keyboards, Samples, Percussion
Huw James – Drums (1,6 & 9)
ADDITIONAL INFO
Record Label: Independent
Country of Origin: U.K.
Date of Release: 9th August 2024