Hammok present “Gooning For Free,” a new single/video off of their forthcoming record, When Does This Place Become Our Scene, out 5th June 2026 via Sargent House. Following lead single “The Scene,” a “blistering post-hardcore anthem” (Treble), “Gooning For Free” is a tongue-in-cheek rager and one of the album’s most feral yet catchiest tracks. Tobias Osland’s voice is acidic and urgent over pummeling instrumentation: “Feel it // grow it // got to feed desire // feel it // grow it // got to be desired.” The accompanying video, directed by NAME, harnesses this vivacious energy as Hammok performs in front of a raucous crowd.
Hammok is the trio of vocalist/guitarist Tobias Osland, drummer Ferdinand Aasheim, and bassist Ole Benjamin Thomassen. Osland and Aasheim first cut their teeth together as pre-teens playing pop-punk and hanging out at a skatepark, eventually meeting Thomassen through other bands. They moved in together just before the pandemic, and as a result of the lack of live performances, “begin to think sonically, in layers and production, instead of in breakdowns that will make people mosh and go crazy,” Osland says.
The resulting When Does This Place Become Our Scene is hectic and chaotic, but full of hooks and intriguing layers alike. Hammok’s idiosyncratic blend of pop production, the vivacious energy of hardcore, and experimental textures fully blossoms, placing them on the vanguard of forward-thinking punk. This is an album that’s equal parts scream-along cathartic and nod-along infectious.
Throughout the album, Hammok balances poignance with their trademark slyness and humor: True to its title, When Does This Place Become Our Scene, “the album delves into the social politics of hardcore and its lineage, and what it means to come of age in the social media era” (Pitchfork). “A central idea was: What does it mean to be alone?” Osland says. “Is it a strength? Do you feel a part of something? A community?” When Does This Place Become Our Scene is an invitation: the sound of a band pouring all of themselves into this new music, promising an audience that this communication, this back and forth, is a worthwhile exchange.