HILOTRONS

When writing music reviews I typically try to do what everyone else tries to do: come up with something that no one else has said on the subject. In this case, untypically, I’ll simply be honored to echo and amplify the central thesis of every review, interview, and puff piece I’ve ever read on HILOTRONS: this band is so flat-out incredible that I‘m frustrated to the point of shaken faith at their anonymity. With this I retell a familiar story, one told since time began by critics who fancy themselves countercultural. We spit our impotent venom at an industry that makes stars of dilettantes while the truly talented languish in obscurity. Nothing happens, most times, and life goes on. Where my predecessors had the Velvet Underground and Alex Chilton, in the era of the long tail I have HILOTRONS, and I would wipe every copy of every record on CMG’s top 50 albums of 2007 off the face of the earth to save one copy of Happymatic.

No matter how much I protest that HILOTRONS are unparalleled masters of their craft—never a misplaced note or misshapen tone—or that band leader Mike Dubue’s (along with guitarist Paul Hogan’s) songwriting is utterly singular without resorting to experimentalism, it won’t do any good. That some band members, particularly Hogan, are among the most impressive musicians in terms of pure instrumental prowess that I’ve ever witnessed doesn’t matter. Whether the band is as stupefying live as it is on record (it’s a tough call) won’t change anything. And I don’t think it’s because they don’t tour widely (i.e. much at all outside of Ottawa) or that they’ve been screwed by labels and/or distributors. It’s not a got-to-pay-your-dues thing. Bands are plucked out of nowhere all the time, and plenty with far fewer hard knocks than these folks. No, these guys just can’t catch a break, and I could include them in podcasts, interview them, and write online webzine love letters to them for the rest of my life without changing their luck one bit. Yes, we live in a world where the popularity of Wolf Parade is enough to sustain not one but three yelpy moustache bands, yet the Horseshoe doesn’t even fill for HILOTRONS’ CD release. There is no God.

And so it is with a heavy, disappointed heart that I love Happymatic, the third installment in the HILOTRONS consistently thrilling catalogue. I’m not too concerned here to make the usual distinctions between their last album and this one; they’re both great and my bet is that you haven’t heard either. Much of what I say here can be applied to both their self-titled debut and the heart-stopping Bella Simone. There’s also not much to say about influences or other bands in the scene because, what scene? (There are lots of kickin’ Ottawa bands, but none of them sound like this.) What influences? Sure, nothing comes from nowhere but this band’s take on the three minute pop song is so distinctive that there are few aural referents; comparison can only be drawn on the level of spirit or gesture. This is why the reviews, such as they are, struggle to place HILOTRONS by throwing handfuls of non-adjectives like “‘80s” or “new wave” at them. Their uniqueness is subtle—not announced with layers of obfuscating noise or deconstructed song structures. Initially the songs on Happymatic seem to fit squarely in pop molds, but further attention reveals that, like Neutral Milk Hotel, the band subsumes all sorts of left-field sounds into its own tightly controlled musical language.

Unlike a sprawling genre-hopping mess like Odelay, where a bunch of duds and silly moments are the cost of the wide musical range, Happymatic is able to cover the same amount of ground while sounding more like HILOTRONS than anything else. This is principally due to the supreme mastery over their gear that Hogan and synth architects Dubue and Mike Schultz constantly exhibit. Hogan’s angled surf interjections (lathered with warm tremolo) into Dubue and Schultz’s cold synth lines create one of the central tensions that keep this record so taut. Perhaps even more impressive is the restraint the band shows in their arrangements and production. Though they possess an absolute embarrassment of virtuosity and sonic imagination, the band lets some of their best ideas last for only a second. Witness in “Deep River” the huge drum pickups in the chorus or the three-note arpeggio after the vocal line at 1:53; these are almost chamber pop touches, changing the mood of the song abruptly, but they only last for a bar, if that. With ideas like this poking in and around every verse and chorus, you could imagine some sort of Olivia Tremor Control haze of overdubs. Not so for these high mages of restraint; Happymatic almost sounds like it was recorded live off the floor.

All these dichotomous tensions—between restraint and wild imagination, between the forward progress of the song and the lateral movement of the instrumental interplay, between the dark subject matter and the incessant beat—exist in such a perfect - Cokemachineglow.com

Ottawa pop rock geniuses Hilotrons hone a timeless sound on the excellent Happymatic, and the multi-layered result is more rewarding with each listen. Even as other bands strive for the quirky tightness of Devo, Talking Heads and the Police, Hilotrons master the artful, immediate energy required to achieve something both sophisticated and infectiously danceable. Without posturing or fanfare, “Lost in Yichang” just gets going, with Mike Dubue’s slick, impassioned voice hooking listeners into the intriguing world of Happymatic. Songs like “Dominika” might be sugar pop but they’re nutritious enough to justify the tooth rot, and are nice appetisers for the thoughtful production and new wave grandeur of “Lovesuit” and the incredibly catchy “Deep River,” which gives Spoon a run for their money. The music here is cocky and manly but possesses a self-aware charm. “Emergency Street” has this vibe, even with a chorus of women singing the hook, as does Paul Hogan’s “Teen Dreams.” The lone anomaly to this brash dance rock comes via a tribute to the band’s hometown, with a starkly winsome cover of the now-defunct Kepler’s “I’m a Parade,” which is wonderfully arranged and executed. Happymatic is a simmering, note-perfect party record by Hilotrons.

Who do you think might gravitate to your new wave sounds?
Dubue: I hope the kids do but I’m not too sure. I was just trying to record Combat Rock basically and this is what we came up with. I really love that album and I always get into debates about Combat Rock with Clash fans but it’s wonderful.

Though upbeat, do you think these songs are dark?
I tend to think they’re slightly angry or despondent. Happiness doesn’t really come automatically to me. Not that I’m a tortured artist or anything but there are a lot of dark themes and I’m self-conscious talking about it. I do like to think that a couple of Paul’s songs are about ex-girlfriends of mine.

Why cover Kepler?
I used to play in Kepler before Samir [Khan] moved to Toronto. I love that song and I’m a big fan of his songwriting. We cover songs by people we know, such as Mike Feuerstack of Snailhouse and Wooden Stars, and Geoff Pye of Yellow Jacket Avenger. John Tielli’s part of that crew too and I feel like I know all of my favourite songwriters in person. (Kelp) - Exclaim.ca

Imagine, if you will, through some confluence of space-time distortion that the Arcade Fire's Win Butler were to stumble into London's Eden Studios in late 1978 and seize the mic from Elvis Costello during the recording of Armed Forces. Throw in some leakage from the Talking Heads recording next door (remember - space-time distortion) and you've got my best elevator pitch for Happymatic, the new record from Ottawa's HILOTRONS. Stylistically rangy but setting up home base around taut, new wave pop but Mike Dubue's strangled, anguished vocals give the proceedings an anxious edge as though he's imploring you to dance - dance for your life. - Chromewaves.net

"A HILOTRONS concert is pretty much a quintessential Ottawa event — for the Ottawa that lies beneath the bureaucratic capital exterior, that is. As at all their shows, representatives from the entire music community and a few hundred fans showed up ready for a slightly-off-kilter dance party at Barrymore's Music Hall on Saturday, which was delivered with prompt efficiency. As for why the rest of the country hasn't quite caught on to the odd charms of HILOTRONS' songs, that remains a mystery.

HILOTRONS launched into several songs from their new Happymatic CD, after a spirited opening set of pumped-up pop from Spiral Beach.

And it only took one song for any newcomers to realize just how much frontman Mike Dubue is the HILOTRONS' music. That's not to discount the virtues of guitarist Paul Hogan, keyboards/synth man Mike Schultz, bassist Damian Sawka and drummer Phil Shaw Bova — all of them are fine musicians whose impeccable playing of the Hilos' quick-change melodic twists bring the music alive and make it look dead easy.

Left leg stomping independently from his body, head jerking forward in bird-like fashion, face contorting to deliver the staccato vocals — Dubue acted out the songs, especially the vowel-heavy "Samurai Robot," where each syllable became its own percussive vocal tic. The HILOTRONS' melodies are undeniably infectious, but Dubue imbues them with a strangeness that keeps the immediate comparisons at bay. No wave, new wave, synth and post-pop are all influences. But ricocheting off the high ceilings of Barrymore's, it all somehow came out like a foreign but welcoming sound. HILOTRONS remain the best live act in Ottawa, and perhaps beyond."- Chartattack.com
- Chartattack.com

"That said, I was front and centre for the Hilotrons, who were celebrating the release of Happymatic, their latest full-length. All told the Ottawa band delivered an admirable and upbeat set that garnered high praise from those in attendance (Rolf from the Acorn looked particularly captivated), but it’s too bad more people weren’t dancing, as the tunes on display were a perfect fit for some booty shakin’. Personally, I was most impressed by lead-singer Mike Dubue’s pipes, as it’s obvious that he’s a very capable vocalist. Of course, the whole evening was just an excuse for me to hear “Lovesuit” live (I just can’t get enough of that damn song)."- Wolves, Hawks & Kites
- Wolves, Hawks & Kites