Although built like a chaotic punk track, there’s a seamlessness to the arrangement of instruments and verses that comprises the whole of Tash Hagz’s new single “Dependent On” uncommon in contemporary rock music to say the least. Chalk it up to his passion for the genre if you’d like, but even beyond what he pours into the emotional half of this composition, there’s something really special about the way he marries the grinding guitar riffs with a blustery bassline and jagged percussive pulse instantly reminiscent of a different era in rock n’ roll history.
This isn’t to say that “Dependent On” is a straight-up throwback, but instead to note just how much Tash Hagz’s demeanor in this performance has in common with the icons who gave his style the definition it’s enjoyed for the better part of the last sixty years. In what has amounted to a rather bleak period for heavy music, here we find an artist committed to giving us its fabled danger element back to the people, and if there’s one reason to check out “Dependent On” this May, that just might be it.
This is unquestionably a rather simplistic composition when stripping it down to nuts and bolts, and in this sense it is entirely Tash Hagz handiwork at the center of the spotlight that makes everything sound so large and in charge from one verse to the next. The instrumental tones are fantastically raw and unfiltered, which is a far cry from what the standard has become on the FM side of the dial in recent years, and though it doesn’t make the melodies what they are, it certainly contributes to the big picture here.
As much as I appreciate the backdrop in “Dependent On,” without the unforced nature of the lead vocal, I’m not totally convinced it would be easy for us to appreciate all of the intricacies lurking behind the shadows of the lyrics my man is belting out at the mic. He’s an intricacy guy, and if that wasn’t common knowledge ahead of this single’s debut, I think it’s going to be a significant talking point for critics in the next few months regardless.
APPLE MUSIC: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/tash-hagz/1501946839?ign-gact=3&ls=1
I hadn’t heard much about Tash Hagz before getting turned onto his music via an industry insider who follows up and coming rock talent out of the United Kingdom, but based on the ambitiousness of “Dependent On,” I think we’re going to hear some really good material out of his camp in the next couple of years ahead. There’s a lot of potential to develop the sound he presents himself with in a stage capacity, and considering how desirable concerts have become once again in the wake of their being absent for an entire calendar year, Tash Hagz couldn’t have picked a better moment to come rolling into the headlines with a hard-rocking style of play audiences had already been craving. I’m looking forward to seeing the kind of heat he brings in-person for myself, and once you check out “Dependent On” I have a feeling you’re going to be in the same boat.
Claire Uebelacker