Hippo Campus w/ Magic City Hippies
Neumos, Seattle, WA
02.24.17

Though Seattle is stereotypically a dark, grunge-loving town, every now and then we show up for an indie-rock newbie. And that’s exactly what we did when Hippo Campus, a little band from Minnesota with plenty of talent, sold out Neumos for the release of party of Landmark, their debut full length album. The album is beautiful; mostly fun and bright like their old stuff, but also with a few tracks that slow things down and hit you somewhere deep. The shivering fans made this the party HC deserved, and it didn’t die down for hours after the show.

The night started off with a performance from Magic City Hippies, a Miami-based band with a sunny aesthetic, complete with floral shirts. These guys jumped genres all over the place, some of their tracks like a poppier version of Tame Impala, some like typical indie pop, and some even edging into a more R&B feel. The inconsistency was intriguing and their set was wonderful.

Short and sweet, they were fun to rock out to and were humble enough that you couldn’t help but love them. “Hush,” played somewhere in the middle of the set, was definitely a highlight. The whispery vocals gave it a smooth feel, but it was still played and sung so intensely that it sucked you in. MCH had a great set to open for HC, and one that was skilled enough that it didn’t feel like the kind of performance you simply had to wait through before the main act.

Running on stage to the screams of every fan in the venue, HC kicked off their set with the first two tracks off their new album. The first opened with a dreamy atmospheric feel that faded perfectly into “Way It Goes,” the kind of sunny and easygoing track the band is best at. The performance continued with a nice mix of old and new tracks before the opening of “Suicide Saturday” played, accompanied by screams of excitement. It’s a track from Hippo Campus’ first album, and essentially their anthem. It sounded like summer – with bright guitars and a happy, catchy melody – and everyone in the room, including the band, couldn’t help but smile, jump around, and sing along.

After such an upbeat song, the performance suddenly flipped way around with “Poems” and “Monsoon,” both of which are true tear jerkers. These two fit more with the opening track, as they messed around a bit more with echoey guitar distortion that gave the songs a floaty and almost sad feel to them. Both featured later on Landmark, they’re beautiful tracks that really make you feel something, and performed live, emotion just poured out of the band.

As the crowd wiped tears away, lead singer Jake Luppen laughed, saying “well now that we’ve all cried a little,” before launching into “South,” another indie-pop anthem that’s perfect to jump around to. The performance continued with more of the same cheery sounds before closing out with “Boyish,” the first single released as a teaser for Landmark. The track is a little heavier and different from the band’s older music, almost feeling like it turns in a bit of the wrong direction, especially when compared to the older music.

In peeking at the setlist that night, I was a little disappointed to see the track as a closer. Though of course, HC pulled through, and now I can’t think of a song that would be a better set closer. It sounded almost the same live as it does recorded, but they made it absolutely massive and intense with the perfect mix of singing at the mics and running around dancing/singing with the audience.

Overall, HC simply had a lovely performance. They didn’t waste a lot of time introducing themselves, thanking the crowd, or talking to the audience, but it still felt perfectly intimate and connected. The show showed off their quirky dynamic as they stared at each other from across the stage, shimmied down to a crouch mid-song, or rolled all over each other playing solos. We laughed, we cried, we rocked out, and we watched in awe. HC delivered an incredible set to celebrate the release of a stunning album, and it couldn’t have been any better.

Review by Lulu Dawson
Photos by Zach Etahiri

Hippo Campus