Some artists’ strategies and approaches to their artistry include filling your senses with all that can be, simply put, by expanding the state-space of what is traditional music by adding as many different styles and accents to it as possible. Some choose the abstract route, some choose a more culturally informed route, while some choose the spunkiest route possible. This leads to a body of work that definitely feels tantalizing in a way, sizzling one’s senses and taking you to a different dimension.
Meet the Steve Hensby Band, splitting at the seams with an assault to the musical senses with elements of funk, soul, ska, world, a sprinkle of psychedelia and a dash of folk. The 9-piece ensemble is regular in the West Australian festival circuit. It features a healthy-sized horn section, which is quite interesting, as most ensembles these days tend to avoid and ignore the horn section. It has been said that they are very danceable, and I think this ties in with their brand pretty well. Exploratory, zany as well as a little spunk all mixed into one.
The main namesake of the band, Steve Hensby, is a Berklee College of Music graduate and West Australian Music Industry award winning musician. He who also works as a session player in the Perth area. He has played with the likes of Jackson Browne, Tim Minchin, John Cleary, Steve Poltz, Randy Feltface, WASO, Perth Symphony Orchestra and Taasha Cootes. With an exciting edge to their approach to music as well as signs of competency, this is definitely a promising act. In this review, we will analyse their newest release titled ‘Astronomers Aren’t Morning People’.
The album is filled with a general space-age theme to it, without necessarily sticking to the conventions of the genre. In terms of the instrumentation, composition and musicality, the songs in this release bear a very theatrical notion and feel to it. I can definitely feel a revivalist ’60s’/’70s’ groove within the multitude of genres embedded into this release, from the way the horns sound to the harmonies. The harmonies breathe the same air as the Bee Gees did, while the horns loosely replicate the saturated feel of Fela Kuti’s ensembles. Various bridges and pre-chorus techniques in these songs also make me think of art rock or operative rock acts, such as Queen.
There is also a strange mixing of Ray Charles-era funk embedded into this album, which I find interesting. However, if you put a logical web that quantifies the subgenres in this release, that is no surprise to the listener. I completely understand why people may find this band ‘danceable’, as it really does have a strong funk/disco vibe to it. Think of David Bowie’s work on ‘Young Americans’, with a futuristic flair of adding certain neo-soul and R&B chords to it as well. These multifaceted aspects lead to a general soundscape that is lush, full, three-dimensional and FULL of musical variability. There is not one song on this release where I think any listener would fall asleep or find that it is trite or predictable, it is very proficiently-executed. Not only are the compositional techniques satisfactory, each of the instruments- human or not, have a very, very warm timbre to it.
Some songs also remind me of the backing that goes within the genres of Bossa Nova as well as the soundtrack to a lot of Burlesque works, in a Shirley Bassey ‘Goldfinger’ type of way. At this point, I am immensely impressed with the band’s ability to sift through this many subgenres without missing a note or feel or two. It is very cinematic and complex in its execution.
In a world where there is technically an oversaturated market involving releases and everyone wanting to be seen and heard, it is easy to just mentally box certain releases as mere ‘songs’ or something to add to your playlist, to play it at another time. In contrast, this release plays off as a story or a movie in the form of compositions, a wonderful trait that can help audiences immerse themselves and lose themselves in the songs.
I also have to commend the vocal power of the various vocalists involved in each track, as they all possess gusto within their vocal ability and a very strong knack for delivering the zeitgeist of the album itself. Each voice has been carefully assigned to a respective song, and I think that is a genius idea, as different voices do express different feelings.
Yes, there is an ‘aged’ quality to these songs, in the sense that younger Gen-Z audiences may not appreciate merely due to biases, but from a purely objective standpoint, the mastering, composition and performance value of this album is pretty darn high. It is funky, it is cinematic, it keeps you in a groove without sacrificing musical integrity. A commendable body of work.
Score/Excellent: The Steve Hensby Band proves its proficiency in their latest release. ‘Astronomers Aren’t Morning People’ will immerse you and take you on a trip to a different dimension, all while executing the wonderful soulful and space-age soundscape that characterises the 60s and 70s. It will feel as if you’re watching a movie without using the sense of sight.
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