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Album Review: Uncle Hauk – Lose Your Illusions

Reviewed by Matthew Williams

Stepping outside of my comfort zone once again, I was drawn towards the latest release from multi-instrumentalist Uncle Hauk. With elements of post-punk, alternative rock, metal and jazz, I was intrigued by this melting pot of musical genres, so dived in for a closer look.

I’d never heard of Uncle Hauk, or Hauk Heimdalssman, to give him his full title, before but there’s an extraordinary wave of cacophonous sounds that greet your ears on the opening track “Tsunami”. I love the bass line that flows and rips through the song, as it’s a powerful sound which lays the foundations for the rest to follow with a different more complex guitar noise coming through on “Only the Living”. There’s plenty of tempo changes and he’s constantly leaving you second guessing as to which direction he’s off to next, but the midpoint solo is good before the sax kicks in to add more variety.

Aided by Quentin Marshall Purviance on drums and percussion throughout the album, Hauk does pretty much everything else, allowing him to break moulds and create expansive soundscapes. “It Doesn’t End Well” feels more sombre and sober in its approach but the music is textured and layered with a plethora of different noises whereas “The World is On Fire” is more direct and punchier in its delivery. The songs have so much happening that you’ll need a few listens to pick up on some of the nuances, but its great discovering new things each time you play them.