‘Hugo’ is the first single from Neighbourhood Youth since the release of their eponymous 2016 EP. The latest song has the force of the Melbourne four piece’s praised single ‘Atlantic’, coupled with the ethereal quality of the layered guitar on ‘For Nothing’.
Beneath the driving percussion and rock guitar on ‘Hugo’ is a dreamy melody, heard distinctly in the song’s quiet moments. Even when the softer elements are largely obscured by the song’s driving riffs, the melody creates an inescapable poignance.
Bassist Sam Nathan wrote the lyrics from the perspective of an old man reminiscing about the war. His fears and regrets are expressed as abstracted recollections while John Philip’s powerful vocals resonate with visceral emotion.
The slow burning outro fades into echoes. ‘Hugo’ sounds beautifully nostalgic, if not for the ghosts that hover in the reverberating peripheries.
This review was originally published in Mismatch.
