Hey!Hello! is a one off project brought to you by the one and only Ginger Wildheart, featuring the vocal duties of the lovely Victoria Liedtke who is also part of his solo touring band. It comes as part of the legendary Wildhearts frontman's second Pledge Music campaign, and it displays a poppier side to the regular eclectic rock we may be used to from Ginger.
It was sold to us as 'noisy pop', and that is pretty much spot on. Huge sing along choruses and a sunny outlook, coupled with powerful riffs and thumping drums, it is infectious from the get go. Pop as a genre is often overlooked, never seen as cool, or just kids play, but Hey!Hello! makes it ok to add a little sugary sweet flavour to your usual listening habits. No shying away from it, the energy gets you.
There is wave after wave of positivity, not just with the music but lyrically also. A tale of rising above the bad day and all the grimness of life, and a message of reassurance. For example, in Feral Days, 'Hey it's ok, not all days, can be beautiful days'. How I Survived the Punk Wars really stands out for me on the record. A fantastically written tale of the music and recording industry from the perspective of Ginger. The album is packed with hit after hit, no dud or filler in sight. Swimwear, Lock for Rock (and other sporting cliches) and Black Valentine are all perfect pop songs with extra bite.
Ginger himself plays every instrument on this record showing his multi-talented skills as a musician as well as a fantastic song writer. Liedtke's voice is the perfect accompaniment to Ginger's. The pair are harmonised and bittersweet in places. The record highlights Victoria's vocals and it wouldn't sound the same without her addition.
Hey!Hello! is a short album, but it demands listen after listen, it wants you to hear it again and again, instantly accessible. The first in a wave of releases from Ginger's latest Pledge campaign, it is a great place to start. Something a little different, it blew me away.
You can still continue to pledge over at http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/gingerwildheartmutation. Remember, we want to revolutionise the music industry and take it back to what it supposed to be all about, the music.
