Earlier this week, we had the new release from Dave Harrington and Tim Mislock, Hollywood Visit, playing at the wook+ offices, and we thought it would be fun to do some reviews. So below are Kev and Llama's reviews of the album. But don't take our word for it. Listen to the album yourself.
by: Kev (@radiator9987)
What do you get when two old friends spend three days making music in Joshua Tree, California? Hollywood Visit, a new project from Dave Harrington & Tim Mislock. Dave is best known for his work with DARKSIDE and Tim for his role as Kryzystoff in Hedwig and The Angry Inch. We are given an album filled with vast spaces and sparse instrumentation, creating a world that amplifies the place of its creation. The abundance of inspired musical ideas, almost cinematic in their scope, make for some arresting soundscapes and sublime sonic excavations. Mislock's ambient roots are at the forefront of tracks like "La Contenta," which washes over you with its melodic sensibility. "The Corner Doctor" brings a country-tinged flavor to the affair, while "Hollywood Visit" brings in a more psychedelic edge to the lead guitar. From the peaceful and pastoral to avant-garde acoustic to brooding and heavy, Hollywood Visit covers a lot of ground. Still, it seems thematically consistent, with the myriad of styles swirling and mixing into a solid first effort. Hopefully, they will, as suggested, do this as a yearly trip, and we will be given a new version of this fascinating duo's vision.
By Llama (@ghost_llama)
When I discovered Taper’s Choice, I was only familiar with Vampire Weekend. I distinctly remember a couple of people coming back to me after listening to TC and asking me why I didn’t tell them Dave Harrington was the guitarist. They would then point me to DARKSIDE, which was a fantastic discovery. Dave’s guitar riffs have quickly become a household favorite and his new album with Tim Mislock, Hollywood Visit, seamlessly slipped into the “Harrington Rotation” and quickly became a repeat listen throughout the week.
Hollywood Visit is the product of a three-day trip to Joshua Tree. The two friends were planning to have fun and live in the moment. Instead, 11 songs emerged from their musical vacation, and we are glad they made them into an album. Dave and Tim not only complement each other but also lift each other up throughout the album, all without sounding rushed or slapped together. Everything feels organic, fresh, and exciting.
From the opening notes of “La Contenta,” the album welcomes the listener with a calmness that invites you to listen to the stories unfold. The interplay between the instruments is different in a way where the music is almost conversational, like two friends catching up. Dave and Tim do a fantastic job playing off each other, letting themes develop and tension build. Hollywood Visit flows from track to track seamlessly, giving the album a natural cohesiveness.
Overall the album feels profoundly personal yet universally relatable. We all have those friends which we rarely get to catch up with, and when we do, it’s like no time has passed. Every song on Hollywood Visit could be a collection of stories somehow tied to the same conversation. Underneath it, all is the desert influence seeping through. Most noticeably in “Man Never Said” which sounds like a soundtrack to two tumbleweeds blowing through a desert in the moments before a gunfight.
The album will be available on Bandcamp Friday, Oct. 21st, and is a great way to kick off the weekend. I suggest listening to the album with a chill Indica and Animal Planet season 1 episode 5, the deserts episode, on mute. The tension in the album pairs perfectly with the wildlife on tv.