record reviews:

Hefty 10 Digest

History is Bunk, Vol. One, Vol. Two

(Hefty)

Record labels have two choices when they hit milestone birthdays:  put out an easy compilation of hits from current artists and B-sides from old favorites who flew the coop, or assemble something a little more rigorous and obscure (not acknowledging the event is not an option).  It’s a tough choice, as longtime followers of labels like to be rewarded with unreleased tracks pulled out of storage, but the compilation can also present a rare opportunity to introduce all or most of your bands to an unfamiliar listening audience in a single serving.  For their 10^th birthday, Hefty has gone with choice C:  all of the above.

First up is the Hefty 10 Digest, understandably the strongest of the four discs released to celebrate the milestone.  Hefty 10 Digest pulls from past decade, bookended by uniquely compelling tracks from two of the label’s most important artists:  Telefon Tel Aviv’s “Fahrenheit Fair Enough” and Savath + Savalas’s “Folk Song For Cello.”  Started as an humble operation to release experimental and esoteric electronic music, the boundaries of Hefty quickly shifted, and the label opened its arms to more jazz-leaning and pop-leaning artists, and even a regular ol’ rock band.  Hefty headman John Hughes shows how the decade has stretched him not only as an A&R man, but also as an artist, with representative tracks from his work as Slicker and with Bill Ding illustrating why Scott Herren (Savath + Savalas, Prefuse 73) was initially drawn to the label, but also how the label is moving forward—and though it seems counterintuitive, sometimes the boldest frontier can be the most structured one (Slicker’s melodic “Knock Me Down Girl” is a highlight here).  A shout-out is also due to Samadha, who provide chilled-out dinner music for the hipster set with “Amidha,” snappy jazz fused with ambient twinkling.

The accompanying bonus disc with Hefty 10 Digest, the Prefuse 73 “mixtape,” gives Herren a chance to revisit some points along the Hefty trajectory.  It’s an interesting combination, because while the first disc shows how the label has encouraged diversity, the Prefuse 73 remixing seems to draw out a core aesthetic that links the Hefty artists, as many of the same acts—Phil Ranelin, the various Hughes outfits, and Telefon Tel Aviv, who stand tallest of all throughout the set—are tweaked and stripped or embellished until they form a single breathing organism.  It’s revisionist history and enjoyable as such, but does have the feel of a “bonus” disc; the real history, after all, is why we all ended up here.

Separately released are History is Bunk Vol. 1 and History is Bunk Vol. 2.  It’s a bold and also self-deprecating approach, acknowledging that it’s no good resting on laurels and, with its new and remixed material, suggesting that the best is yet to come.  Of course, pound for pound, neither History is Bunk collection rivals Hefty 10 Digest for pure satisfaction.  But relative new kid on the block Eliot Lipp has already become one of label’s leading lights; his urbane “Heat” is a History is Bunk highlight (on Vol. 2).  It’s worth noting, too, that the label is sticking with an open submission policy, which surely means plenty of sifting through the darkness.  Ten years into it, the flashlight beam from Hughes and Hefty is one that is still well worth following.

— Adam McKibbin

www.heftyrecords.com

 

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