The Hunches: Same New Thing 12"

The Hunches surfaced in the waking years of this century to hit a nerve that desperately needed hitting. Playing a cacophonic, gritty kind of rock & roll, they were an antithesis to the stylized version of so-called garage rock that had come into favor. The Portland four-piece released three full-lengths and an assortment of singles on labels like In the Red before calling it a day in 2009. Now, Almost Ready Records, who released an album’s worth of demos in 2016, is releasing a second full volume of recordings heretofore unheard. Recorded in 2002, many of these demos would wind up on their first album, Yes No. Shut It. Here, though, cuts like “Explosion” and “Confusion” are less overblown, with the nuances of The Hunches’ attack revealed. Meanwhile, the new songs show that the band had more solid material than one album could contain. Think of these recordings as ground zero, as they laid the foundation for The Hunches’ all too brief, but amazing existence.