Despondency fills the air not long after hitting play on the new single “Hypnotherapology” from Hourstone, but this isn’t because of any flaw in the careful melody we’re listening to. Even before Hourstone begins to sing, there’s a passion in the instrumentation that will become his central backdrop that even the most discriminating of ears can’t deny. As we listen on, “Hypnotherapology” transforms into something larger than life in every way that matters, and when considering it’s being comprised of little more than a piano and a vocal, no one can accuse this artist of being limited in talent. He’s got the chops to do a lot with his stinger of a voice, and he wastes no time in getting right to business here.
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It doesn’t take us very long to figure out what the nucleus of this track is; it’s the powerful voice driving home the lyrics, but I wouldn’t say that its melodic strength is the only component of Hourstone’s appeal in “Hypnotherapology.” Whether it’s what he’s singing or how he’s singing it to us, he’s constantly presenting a poetic duality in both his tone and his overall delivery that reaffirms how honest he’s being here. He doesn’t have to be aggressive in the ascent to strike a nerve with the audience – he’s throwing up fireworks at some of his most humble moments in this track, and that’s difficult even for the most seasoned of artists in the pop/rock genre.
As we get towards the conclusion of “Hypnotherapology,” Hourstone’s voice soon transitions into a near-whisper, alluding to a yearning-filled slumber that seems to commence instantly upon the music fading into the silence. It’s provocative and warm, but beyond the cosmetics, it feels like a chapter from a story that hasn’t yet been completed. I think that Hourstone has a lot of potential to explore progressive concepts in the future, and in his launching of an embracive narrative in this most recent release, he’s lending optimism to his fans like few other pop singers have in 2023. This could be a turning point, much as 2019’s “Halfway House” was a critical stepping stone, and you needn’t give this track more than a cursory listen to understand why I think so.
“Hypnotherapology” isn’t the only indie single you should be listening to this fall, but if you ask me, it’s one of the best vocal-driven pop songs to come from the left side of the dial in a long time. There aren’t a lot of ballads that step away from the theatrics as smoothly as this one, and even though there’s a lot of depth that I think this artist could be exploring more liberally the next time he steps into the recording studio, I think this demonstrates a star-quality ‘it’ factor that will make Hourstone all the more attractive to pop fans looking for something fresh right now. Hourstone has made a fan out of me, and if you give him a chance, I think he will make one of you as well.
Garth Thomas