THE HUNNA - THE HUNNA
With a meteoric rise to global success, The Hunna are considered to be one of the most exciting bands on the circuit. Having built their golden reputation on crafting instant indie-rock anthems, the rock trio from Hertfordshire have only continued to climb higher and developed an insanely devoted fanbase guaranteed to turn every gig and festival appearance into an unmissable event.
But, following the disappearance of past social media posts and the emergence of a bold new aesthetic in time for their latest record, The Hunna, are the band forgetting where they came from or are they simply kickstarting the new era?
Following in the footsteps of 2020’s ‘I’d Rather Die Than Let You In’, the bands self-titled digs into their original ‘90s and ‘00s rock influences, stripping everything back to their anthemic rock origins and drawing on sounds similar to Kings of Leon. From the opening synths of the ‘The Storm’ to its tongue-in-cheek masterpieces, it is clear that this record was crafted with love as it takes us on a journey through some of the bands most personal moments.
A potent blend of anger and savage dark humour, the albums explosive lead single ‘Trash’ kicks things off by giving the music industry both barrels, taking shots at those who told them to capitalise on their popularity. The riotous track finds the alternative outfit letting loose, a recurring theme across the record, and rightfully so. Packed with punchy, on-the-nose lyrics to match, the track is the perfect balance between scathing and amusingly sardonic while expressing how the band harbour little to no fear when it comes to being brutally honest.
This sardonic humour is carried into ‘Fugazi’ and ‘You Can’t Sit With Us’. However thrillingly aggressive and fast-paced the tracks are, The Hunna refuse to shy away when they have something to say. The stomping ‘Fugazi’, which is full of squealing guitars, slams in to demonstrate how much the band are past caring with its pontificating lyrics concerning girls, partying and losing your inhibitions whereas the pop culture references running through ‘You Can’t Sit With Us’ documents the bands uneasy relationship with the various rock factions envious of their rapid rise.
Switching the melodic tone of the multi-faceted record to one of a lighter calibre, soaring indie-pop ballads ‘Find A Way Out (Back To You)’ and ‘Circles’ further highlight the bands haunting vulnerability. The touching ‘Find A Way Out (Back To You)’ captures the sheer girth of frontman Ryan Potter’s vocals, which show to be tender, melancholic and forceful all at the same time while the gigantic ‘Circles’, which compares the bands life in lockdown to being a “punk-rock Truman in a one-man show,” addresses a one-step forward, two-steps back dynamic.
Without stating the obvious, the overriding sentiment throughout this record is that The Hunna are finally free. They have taken back control and gained immense confidence in doing so; the result is their greatest, most ambitious work yet. The long-anticipated record seethes with its colossal riffs, irresistible melodies and memorable lyrics that tackle post-lockdown fiery moments (‘Take A Ride’ and ‘Fugazi’) as well as the laughable lighter ones (‘Circles’ and ‘You Can’t Sit With Us’) and with rock influences aplenty, The Hunna will easily achieve the band’s goal of “standing the test of time.”
Shannon Garner
★★★★☆