Hugo Race crafts moody soundscapes with sensual appeal that blend into an attractive, though sparse whole.
Hugo Race has been a mainstay of the alternative scene for 40-odd years. An early player in Melbourne’s post-punk scene as well as an early collaborator of Nick Cave, the songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer has gone on to release dozens of albums under different monikers and in different capacities: a steady, ever-present output since the early 80s, spread out over places like his native Australia, Germany, the UK, and Italy. In the latter, he founded his own label, Helixed, its roster featuring both his own creations and those of international musicians alike. A recent collaboration featured influential Australian band The Church’s Steve Kilbey.
I Made it All Up For You is his most recent release under the moniker Hugo Race Fatalists. The album features a self-described “signature fusion of roots music, electronica, Italian soundtracks and desert rock”. This is Race’s sixth release with Italian backing band Fatalists, and reflects influences and soundscapes absorbed from the Italian music scene as well as the artist’s interest in blues and other American soundscapes. Bare, acoustic sketches originally recorded by Race in a remote cabin in Italy were expanded and transformed with the collaboration of musicians such as frequent PJ Harvey bassist Giovanni Ferrario and Jennifer Charles of New York band Elysian Fields.
The result is a moody, atmospheric production, with Race’s voice weaving in and out of a textured background throughout, grounded violins and acoustic guitars punctuated by hints of electronica. Regarding its conception, Race describes a lonely search for the album’s theme, stating: ”I was at the crossroads of a long term relationship unraveling under a blazing antipodean sun”. This pairing of the vulnerable and the grandiose is reflected in the album’s lyrics, with tracks titled Broken Love and Against the World featuring lyrics such as:
“Here comes the sunrise, majestic cold
Lies & chaos & freedom in the aquarian age
Stardust pumpin’ thru our veins”
A sort of latent, mystical grandeur is pervasive in the album, distancing it from the remote cabin of its origins and inching it towards the wider mass appeal of arena rock: somewhere between Bon Iver and U2.
The second half of the album provides a slight change in feel, toning down the ambient and ethereal production and allowing individual elements to shine in tracks like In the Shade and I Collide, which offer changes in structure and add different dynamics. Race concludes: “A lot of joy and pain and reflection went into the making of this album and I hope that comes across; this is about the darkness yes, but also the light. Everything changes and every ending is a new beginning but it’s how we experience transformation that really matters.”
In the end there is a terse sensuality to the record, the appeal of a car ride at dusk.
