Garth is one of the strangest hunter they have ever met, but he's undeniably endearing and go a while back now. The fact that he named his kids after him and Cas (instead of Dean) was quite amusing to him. Sam doesn't have that much experience with kids, least of all babies, but it made him happy that their friend turned werewolf were able to live a relatively normal life and have kids.
Album Review by Bradley Christensen
Garth. – Human Nature
Record Label: Self-released
Release Date: March 16 2018
Something I love in music today is how a lot of bands have their own little “universes,” pretty much like the Marvel Cinematic Universe, because each member might have their own project, so you have tons of different bands that intersect. Hell, maybe even members of the original band might join a different, well-established band, especially if their original band broke up. Dudes like Jonny Craig, Kurt Travis, and Tilian Pearson, all of whom were (or in the case of Pearson, are) in Dance Gavin Dance, have tons of bands and projects to get into, whether it’s solo stuff or side projects. Most people come across these other projects after they listen to the original band or whatever, but sometimes I find the solo material first. That’s what happened when I came across a mysterious project called Human Nature by an artist named Garth. That’s it. Garth. I wonder how many times he’s heard someone make a joke about Wayne’s World. I’m too high-brow for that, so I won’t entertain that idea, but I was very intrigued by the cover art, the album art, and just the overall aesthetic of the record. I was also curious about the description, because Garth was talking about being influenced by 70s soul, 80s new wave, and 90s R&B, all of which are things that I really love. Out of those decades, those are probably my styles of music from each one (I mean, I also really love 70s hard-rock / blues-rock, and I do love me some 80s glam metal, traditional heavy metal, and late-80s death metal, as well as 90s death metal, but I do love a lot of 70s soul / funk, 80s new wave, and 90s R&B, so it works), and that made me insanely curious about the project. It didn’t seem very long, too, only around 28 minutes, because there are only eight songs on it. I downloaded it, and while I was listening to it, I noticed that on his Facebook page, he’s the frontman of a band called The Rooks. They’re an indie-soul band, as they call themselves, so I went to listen to a track from their debut EP, 2015’s Wires.
They’re a really creative, interesting, and unique band, and the whole EP is worth listening to. I don’t want to review the whole thing, just because there’s not much to really say with it. I mean, it’s great, but that’s all you need to know – it’s a short, quick, and unique EP that blends indie-rock with soul music. It’s done incredibly well, and it’s one of the biggest surprises I’ve come across in awhile. They have a new album in the works, too, so I can’t wait for that. In the meantime, let’s talk about Garth’s Human Nature, and I wanted to talk about this more so, because there is more to talk about with this record, because it spans a lot of styles, ideas, and genres. If you want my thoughts on it briefly and quickly, it’s fantastic. This is a fantastic album that blends so many retro styles in a way that feels modern, fresh, and interesting. The only downside that I’d argue it has is that it’s a bit scattershot with its overall sound, but that’s not a terrible thing, because it’s really short. It’s only 28 minutes, like I said, so it’s not that long whatsoever. To get into specifics, however, there are a few things that I really love about this record, and we have to talk about Garth himself. He’s got one of the most amazing, beautiful, fantastic, and wonderful voices I’ve heard in a long, long time. His voice is gorgeous, and even if you’re not into the album itself, you have to admit that his voice is flawless. On pretty much every track, he shines beautifully. Listen to these hooks, as well as the melodies, because he knocks it out of the park every time. I’m shocked he’s not bigger, because he’s got a fantastic voice that uses very well. The lyrics on this thing are very well-done, too, as they’re nothing necessarily new or groundbreaking, but in the same vein as Hayley Kiyoko’s debut album, they’re very relatable, so anyone can really apply them to their own lives. The only guest spot this album has is rapper Watsky on the title track, which is a really weird choice, but he’s not horrible. He’s not that great, but he doesn’t actively make the song worse. His feature’s very short, but it’s such an odd pairing, because I’ve always been under the impression he’s a comedic rapper.
The last thing I wanted to talk about is the sound, and that’s where things can be hit or miss for people. Garth, as I’ve mentioned, has a very retro sound to him, but it’s not one specific sound. He doesn’t only have an 80s new wave, 90s R&B, or 70s soul sound, so he’s merely emulating a single genre, but he takes multiple ones from multiple eras. He doesn’t necessarily blend them together, since you can tell which song is what genre. This can bother people if they love those styles, and they think he’s just ripping them off, but like I said earlier, I don’t think so. It doesn’t bother me for one reason – he adds a very modern spin to them. Yeah, he doesn’t do anything dramatic, but his vocals, the lyrics, and the production are all very modern and fresh. The album is a bit scatterbrained, since it doesn’t flow that well, but it’s a short project, so I don’t care too much about that. Regardless, I love this project quite a lot. It’s one of the best of the year. It’s also one of the most surprising projects of the year, too, because I randomly found it on Bandcamp. I was looking for some new R&B records, and that one caught my attention (as well as my eye). I was really curious about it, and I’m glad I checked it out, because it’s fantastic. Even just for Garth’s vocals, that’s the best thing about it, hands down. He’s a wonderful singer, and even a damn good songwriter, too. I love his very retro sound that spans many different eras and styles of music, which makes his music both interesting and diverse. It can be a bit scattershot for some people, and I get why, for sure, but it doesn’t bother me too much. This album’s only 28 minutes, so there’s not a whole lot here. I could do without Watsky’s feature on the title track, but if anything, Watsky’s got a big following, so I can see people listening to this record, because of him. It’s pretty forgettable, despite not being all that bad. The rest of the record is great, and it’s one of the best albums of the year (it says it’s an EP, but I consider it an album, just because it’s around a half hour in length, and I really want to talk about it at the end of the year).
