Album Review: Hung at Heart by The Growlers

After traveling the country and corrupting countless young virgins in their “California Church Teen Choir” tour bus, those surfing marijuanos from Orange County are finally back with another gothic beach party for their friends. The Growlers’ third full-length album sounds like a sketchy Tijuana pharmacy that’s got a little “something” for everybody. Salty honky-tonks like “Pet Shop Eyes” and “Derka Blues” appear alongside guitarist Matt Taylor’s psychedelic boleros like “It’s No Use,” which sounds like Los Panchos caught in a riptide.

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The phrase “burned out” has such bad connotations. When you consider the surfy, crunchy, entirely burned out party rock in the vein of The Growlers, that might just be something to aspire to. The So-Cal five-piece sound so comfortable being the stoned philosopher on Hung at Heart, hopping from party to party, delivering gems of lyrical wisdom in the midst of the thoroughly kicked out jams.

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The story behind ‘Hung At Heart’ is an interesting one. Originally, the Californian five-piece had planned to go into the studio to record with The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach. For some reason or other those plans fell through and instead ‘Hung At Heart’ was entirely self-produced on a customary low budget. Any thoughts of what might have been though are negated by a fine record which is high on 60s garage pop charms and is evocative of The Growlers’ own laid-back world.Their sound is steeped in dreamy reflection and an easygoing lifestyle fostered on California’s many beaches.

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The Growlers left Black Key Dan Auerbach at the production altar last winter, ditching Nashville on account of an "overcooked" assessment of their third album and retreating back to California in hopes of drumming up some psychedelic sun. Hung at Heart opens with the bright, jangly "Someday" before sliding into this whirly, reverberated abyss that bottoms out with the disorienting "It's No Use," which sounds like bad mescaline. "Use Me for Your Eggs" towers.

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