Von Hazeler
This Aussie power trio is looking for Trouble.
I’ve said it before and you can put it on my headstone. The best bands are trios. Period. Disagree? You can’t. Everybody has a massive role to play. When it’s off, it’s worse than your ex-spouse. When it’s good, it’s lacking. When it’s on - it’s brilliant. Sunshine Coast power-trio Von Hazeler fits this bill perfectly. Aside from the tones, lyrics, and arrangements being on point, you can tell there’s some great theoretical thoughts behind their melodies and chord choices. “Trouble” is a perfect example of this. Crank it up, here we go!
Love the riff that starts the song. Minor tonic, major seven, major four, major three if you want to get all technical - but even played in fifths it smokes. And the snare build up is killer. Verse sets up the story of a tough guy on the street - “if you’re looking for me, you’re looking for trouble” - perfect punk vibe. It’s a back and forth between the verses and pre-choruses before the main chorus hits, and there’s a great major chord surprise in this section! It starts on the tonic as a minor, goes up to a major 3, then a major 4, then back to a MAJOR 1. Damn, that’s sexy. Back to the main riff we go and we can see the club exploding. As the lyrics talk about getting arrested, we’re right there with them - angry and head banging through the second full chorus and the solo and primal screams that finish off the track after a third chorus. As they say down under, bonza.
The presentation here is tighter than The Chats, who we adore, and The Clash, who we worship. The harmonies and simple and effective, just like the mix. Even if everything was snapped to the grid, who cares, the track breathes heavy.
This is their third single, and easily our favorite. We think they’ve found a solid sound and look forward to what they’ll be doing next!