The Bandcamp of Hayes Noble says Spokane but the sound is all Seattle. As It Was, As We Were, out now, owes such a huge debt to Nirvana that the album ought to come with a disclaimer. The tracks, with behind-the-desk work from Luke Tweedy, maintain an admirably frenetic pace, even as the feedback takes the place of actual melody in a lot of cases.
I hesitate to nitpick the work of a young artist as, clearly, Hayes Noble has a tremendous path ahead of himself. That said, there's not much on this album that seemed all that different than things Cobain, Ty Segall, and J Mascis have done already. "Comets" has a grunge-y rush about it, even as "Nothing Else" is nearly pop-punk, though of course there's so much feedback and noise here as to make that sort of impossible. The tracks have a lot of energy about them, no matter what the pace, but the hooks just aren't that obvious to me. With Noble's voice so far back in the mix, all a listener can address is the guitar squall. And I love that kind of noise as much as the next person, but too much of this was too same-y to really earn a rave from me.
There's a lot of enthusiasm here for the kind of alt-rock we've not heard much of in the last 20 years. That said, for anyone over 25 encountering As It Was, As We Were, there's likely going to be little that surprises. If I was younger, and hearing this at deafening volumes in a small venue, I'd likely be in love with this record. Then again, your mileage may vary so give this at least a listen.
As It Was, As We Were by Hayes Noble is out now. Details below.
[Photo: Rose Noble]