Oslo’s Hammok release “Tap Water,” a new single/video off of their forthcoming album, When Does This Place Become Our Scene, out June 5th via Sargent House. Following the raucous “Gooning For Free” and “The Scene,” “Tap Water” is inventive and brooding, leaning into softer and more grooving influences. When Does This Place Become Our Scene is hooky, hectic and chaotic, and “Tap Water” works as “a moment to touch grass.” “The song plays with the idea of self sabotage and reaching out for an exchange of energy,” explains vocalist/guitarist Tobias Osland. “It’s not enough to do something just to say it’s done, it needs to be done for a reason and for actual effect, not for show. If I show that I give a shit, then people will see that it’s real and we can vibe together.”
The accompanying video, directed by Christoffer Bya, was shot at Bromsjordet, a skatepark in Horten, Norway. Fittingly to the song’s theme of connection, the skatepark is a cherished place to the band, who often hung out there in the early days of Hammok.
Hammok is the trio of vocalist/guitarist Tobias Osland, drummer Ferdinand Aasheim, and bassist Ole Benjamin Thomassen. On When Does This Place Become Our Scene, their idiosyncratic blend of pop production, the vivacious energy of hardcore, and experimental textures fully blossoms, placing them on the vanguard of forward-thinking punk. It ranges from tongue-in-cheek ragers to tracks that blend caustic tones with their love for emo and indie.
This is an album that captures polarities of underground intensity and pop sensibility. When Does This Place Become Our Scene is equal parts scream-along cathartic and nod-along infectious.