Wellington based Hex are essentially my dream band. The trio recently released their album Calling to the Universe and from my first listen I found myself completely submerged by quicksand vocals and slippery guitars.
Hex are Liz Mathews on drums, Kiki Van Newtown on bass, and GG Van Newtown on guitar. The group released the single “Witches of the Hex” in 2013 and then went on hiatus, releasing Calling to the Universe in May 2016. They are inspired by the “feminine energy” that has been routinely suppressed in every part of our lives, and this is absolutely apparent in the palpably visceral drive behind this record. The group are concerned with mother earth and how we treat her, and how we get by in this world, and how we can return to our inner magic to cope with modernity.
The second track on the album, “Albatross” is reference to Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”. Strung along to a hauntingly catchy melody Kiki sings, “instead of a cross, the albatross about my neck was hung”. In an interview with Noisey Kiki Van Newtown admits, “my lyrics are pretty nerdy. I did an English degree and had to read a million books by white dudes”, she explains that of course this has been influential in her writing, but she uses it as a “canvas to explore everything [she] hates about dominant western culture”. “Albatross” is about humans and their appalling attitude towards the destruction of the natural world, of entire ecosystems, all in the name of personal and corporate greed. Whatever notion Coleridge might have had about his being a radical, he was a man rooted firmly in dominant western culture. And, in grappling with this patriarchal dominance and realigning its work with a fundamental respect for Papatūānuku, Van Newtown gifts us with a song that is not only musically gripping, but is also politically and intellectually stimulating.
This album is also a mélange of musical styles, ranging from unabashedly pop to deep, doomy metal inspired riffs. As Van Newtown puts it, “[their] riffs tend towards Black Sabbath, but [their] vocals are more Enya”. At times, the blend of super melodic, ethereal vocal lines and sludgy, bottomless riffs is so powerful it hits you like a literal kick to the face. “Witches of the Hex”, for example starts slow and then the vocals come in and it is absolutely devastating, I couldn’t get the coolly chanted chorus out of my head for days.
As the name Hex suggests, there is something magical about this group and this record. Often their music feels glistening, an enchantment luring you into the coven, maybe to make you pay for ruining the earth or maybe to take you in. But, equally as often, their music displays a gritty edge, a menacing frustration convincing you that while their powers might primarily be benevolent, there’s always the chance that something a little bit scary is just around the corner.