Twelve Days In June – Hiraeth

“Hiraeth” is the latest full-length album by Twelve Days in June, an outstanding music outlet based in Schenectady, NY. Heavily promoted with singles such as “Numb” and “Planned Obsolete,” this album showcases all the talent, creativity, talent, experience, and knowledge of Dave Hulegaard, the mastermind behind this exceptional project. Lyrically, “Hiraeth” explores themes such as grief, isolation, nihilism, and mortality, so it’s a relatable material that will unquestionably resonate with the broader auditorium. Soundwise, Dave Hulegaard intended to create a comprehensive collection of catchy, engaging, memorable tracks based on the music he listened to during the nineties. You’ll stumble upon many different but complementary music genres colliding in a colossal slab of harmonious noise. Perhaps alternative rock comes to mind first, but don’t be surprised if you stumble upon some of the finest properties borrowed from grunge, shoegaze, indie rock, and dream pop. Twelve Days in June continuously levitates between nostalgia and modern sound, creating a memorable listening experience that will undoubtedly appeal to even the pickiest music enthusiasts. Dave Hulegaard uses all these elements as more than necessary enhancements, accentuations, decorations, and other details to uplift his music to new heights while simultaneously remaining loyal to the primary sonic direction. Therefore, these experimentations with many different but complementary styles resulted in an exceptional collection of incredible songs, suitable for all the alternative rock fans and beyond.

With the initial notes and beats, it becomes apparent that Twelve Days in June is not joking around with his music. “Hiraeth” arrives with an entire amalgam of ear-appealing numbers that grab you by the collar and refuse to let go even long after this album ends. Each composition carries a perfect structure garnered with brilliant ideas and marvelous orchestrations. Hulegaard thought about everything while assembling these songs, and his writing, composing, arranging, and producing abilities shine through every vocal, sonic, and rhythmic maneuver. As soon as you press play, you’ll notice how his calm, soothing, relaxing, ethereal voice serves as a centerpiece, decorating everything he intended to achieve with this material. The passionate, sincere, confident, powerful delivery commands attention and guides the listening apparatus from scratch to finish, emphasizing every segment and orchestration. His vocal harmonies seamlessly glide over low, mid, and high notes, adding emotional depth and complexity to already intricate songs. Tracks like “Numb,” “Magic Hour,” “The Day I Learned Your Name,” “Miranda Lawson,” “The Wanderer,” and “Planned Obsolescence” exemplify his ability to infuse various emotions with such precision and finesse.

In the meantime, the interplay between rhythm and lead guitars shapes such an otherwordly backdrop for all the vocal articulations to shine upon. You’ll immediately hear how heavy and powerful riffs and chord progressions resonate on one side while the soothing, relaxing themes, melodies, harmonies, and other sonic delicacies shine on the other. The generous servings of fuzz provide more than necessary rawness, abrasiveness, and grittiness, one of the main qualities of the nineties alternative, grunge, and shoegaze music. Songs like “Numb,” “Magic Hour,” “Undertow,” “Going Home,” “Polymorphic Light Eruption,” and “Blush” are just some of the standouts where Twelve Days in June blends some of the finest qualities borrowed from shoegaze, grunge, and alternative music while the tracks like “The Sea Is Wishing Well,” “The Day I Learned Your Name,” “Miranda Lawson,” “The Bittersweet Season,” and “The Wanderer” also shows his admiration towards modern and retro indie rock scene, with all those calmer, soothing, ethereal guitar works lurking around. There are generous servings of studio reverby included along the way, applied for a deeper, echoic ambiance that emphasizes all those guitar layers. It’s also nearly mindblowing how the vocals and guitars pair together harmoniously from beginning to end, enhancing the listening experience to the max.

Of course, “Hiraeth” wouldn’t be complete without a rock-solid rhythm section. You’ll notice how all those equally complex, vividly hearable, warm-sounding basslines lurk beneath guitar works, providing more than necessary heaviness, clarity, and depth while binding the remainder of the orchestrations with drums. Dave Hulegaard paid equal attention to these particular details, so the bass guitar sounds impressive like the rest of the instrumentation. The excellent drumming keeps everything in line while dictating groove and tempo with tastefully assembled, flawlessly performed, well-accentuated, moderate beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics. If the guitars act as a perfect backdrop for all the vocals to shine upon, then the rhythm section serves as a backbone, holding everything together without sounding overwhelming. As you can see, Twelve Days in June thought about everything while writing, composing, arranging, performing, and producing his latest piece of work. “Hiraeth” marvelously compiles some of the finest properties borrowed from alternative, grunge, shoegaze, and indie music, making this album a masterpiece and unquestionable standout on the contemporary rock scene. Once again, Dave Hulegaard proves he’s an exceptional songwriter and musician, capable of assembling emotionally resonant compositions, heavily drenched in lush guitar works and rhythmic patterns. It’s an incredible album worth spinning over and over again, and you should immediately place it on your music radar. It’s available on all streaming platforms. Don’t miss it!