Twelve years after releasing their debut single, Hooper (Denver) are back in the fold with their third LP, the sympathetically titled Swim the Races Nobody Wants. The album is a nostalgic nod to a time when punk bands dared to break free of genre constraints, or simply became more ambitious in their pursuit of mastering their instrument. Hooper are not easy to box in as college rock, indie rock, or alternative rock and pop, and yet all of their new songs fit in one of these categories.
I am not sure whether the album title hints at this, but Hooper’s play a style few bands seem to embrace nowadays, it’s music made for a bygone era – but I guess this applies to most of the music we write about. You can tell that Hooper feel right at home in their role as underdogs.
Swim the Races Nobody Wants is out now on LP at Snappy Little Numbers, the label the band’s stayed loyal to throughout their career – and vice versa.
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