Hollow Engine's spiraling psyche art rock dream elegance of "Illuminated Pitch Black" and "Song of Tiny Notions" all caught on security cameras (Official Videos)

"distant dark"

Hearing a studio honed song and being captivated by it always begs the question, how does the artist or band sound live? How much of their sound is shaped by the post production process or by the myriad of filters and studio enhancements. In the case of New York based (by way of Pennyslvania) Hollow Engine who just released two live performance videos recorded at The Nautilus in Brooklyn, and considering this is my first introduction to this post rock-esque indie quartet, there is no need to wonder.

I love this sort of thing. Radiohead's 2008 video "In Rainbows - From the Basement" is one of my favorite divergent post rock live performances ever and I thought of it while watching Hollow Engine stir their askew panorama of sounds. "Illuminated Pitch Black" with it's falling jagged psychedelia pushed by bell toned Rhodes sounds and an art rock breakdown that did make me think of the Radiohead (circa The Bends) along the fringe.

The bands says: ["Song of Tiny Notions" is about seeking purpose in the context of being an infinitely small part in the expanse of time and space. It explores how to be existentially whole when the connection between ourselves and our origins at the beginning of time is so distant.] This piano based track is dreamy and feels like a prog rock band doing a ballad with baroque pop affections. When the song spirals into a wild storm of psyche art rock it is heavenly. The pushed croons are shared by both songwriters, multi-instrumentalists Cory Peterson and Griffin Novie with similar vocal aesthetics but not quite. This makes for a dynamic aural vocal cat and mouse. In fact, on "Illuminated Pitch Black" when the beautiful harmonies came in it felt as if Peterson dropped in a backing track of self harmonies but that, of course, was not the case.

These live videos were shot with stationary security cameras and at first were intended to show venues their live sound but with concerts shutting down due to the pandemic, they share them with the world. Hollow Engine's tightly emotionally wound sound with 70's psyche rock affections is alluring stuff. I love how the sound is pushed gently but powerfully. In the end, amid the big ascensions there are touches of rock elegance. In tone and atmosphere (only) I thought of an amalgamation of many artists from Slow Dive to Pink Floyd to Radiohead to Rufus Wainwright to The Beatles.

Hollow Engine are comprised of Cory Peterson (Piano, Keyboards, Guitar, Bass, Voice), Kevin Kniowski (Bass, Guitar, Voice, Effects), Robin Peterson (Drums, Percussion) and Griffin Novie (Guitar, Keyboards, Voice).

-Robb Donker Curtius

THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:

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Hollow Engine have been quietly honing their distinct rock sound since two brothers and one old friend relocated to New York City from their Pennsylvania hometown in 2010. But their shared musical journeys began long before that. Percussionist Robin Peterson and songwriter/arranger Cory Peterson grew up together the sons of a jazz musician, while bassist/guitarist Kevin Kniowski and Cory met in high school in 2001 and have been playing music together since. With years of long sessions, improvising jams, they have developed a language of performance that is deeply synchronized and especial. Multi-instrumentalist/songwriter Griffin Novie joined the group in 2019.

The band conveys psychedelic impressions of metropolis through a viscerally human perspective. The music of Hollow Engine and its name effect images of urban struggle, both personal and societal.

The members have been inspired by 60s and 70s rock (especially from South America, Sweden, England, the US and Germany), decades of jazz, and past musical scenes from around the world, notably the Brazilian Clube da Esquina movement. These influences are blurred and transformed into a unique aesthetic by the obsession to create something totally new using inputs from the past.