Hovvdy – “Blast”

I don't think of Hovvdy as a band where the singer holds a microphone, which is to say I don't think of core duo Will Taylor and Charlie Martin as frontmen in the classic sense. The band's music feels too insular and introverted for that kind of showmanship. I think of these guys holding instruments when they sing, not really commanding my attention, letting the song do the talking. But they're changing my perception with this new album rollout.

Hovvdy made their forthcoming Big World after relocating from Austin to Nashville to pursue careers as pro songwriters. The video for lead single "Try Try Try" had them rocking out in a basement, with Taylor in the role of the revved-up lead singer, thrashing about with unbound joy. The song was a mechanistic Strokes-like rocker, so it made some kind of sense.

"Blast," the new Martin-penned single out today, is closer to the gauzy, laid-back Hovvdy sound of yore, albeit with an electronic beat straight out of a '90s pop song. The video, again directed by Michael Rees, has Martin on the mic, losing himself in the song against a shadowy backdrop. Eventually, Taylor is there too. They seem to be enjoying themselves, and maybe you'll enjoy yourself too when you watch below.

Big World is out 8/14 on Arts & Crafts.