Craggy Collyde
Fertile Hump are a Polish rock ‘n’ roll trio blending a fine mix of blues and garage into something quite special. Emerging from the ashes of previous band, the Stubs, guitarist Tomek Szkiela formed Fertile Hump in 2015 with guitarist/vocalist Magda Kramer and drummer Maciek Misiewicz and the Warsaw-based group have been prolific ever since.
Having caught them at Brno’s excellent Kabinet Muz club earlier this year and picking up a vinyl copy of their 2016 album Dead Heart, I have been eagerly awaiting new material and a return visit. Kiss Kiss or Bang Bang is their second full album and largely builds on the same sound as Dead Heart, only adding a little colour here and there.
Dead Heart was a straightforward, stripped down album of bluesy rock ‘n’ roll which was built around great song writing and the glorious harmonies of Kramer and Szkiela. Thankfully, the same can be said this time round. In both albums there is something hauntingly magical about the songs, held up by a production beautiful in its simplicity. The dual vocals and loose guitar work are backed up with Misiewicz’s punchy rhythm.
The way the vocals play off of each other is an enjoyable element of the album, used fully in songs such as Yeah Right but remaining a dominant feature throughout. While songs such as the opening title song and Old Soul capture the style that was present in Dead Heart, songs such as It Feels So Good, Lost and Lonely and Vultures add a few extra layers to the record.
Simply put, Fertile Hump are an incredibly enjoyable band, producing music which, while based on a simple formula, offers a sound which is particularly theirs. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang takes their previous work and builds on it subtly enough to produce a consistently superb record.
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