Burrows & Other Hideouts is out now.
Brighton’s Chalk Hands are a fascinating and emotionally hard hitting proposition. Combining the emotional heft and brutality of post hardcore bands like At The Drive-In with the nuance and structural experimentation of post metal / post rock groups like Cult of Luna and Explosions in the Sky, they craft what can only described as soaring confrontation on debut EP Burrows & Other Hideouts.
The result is a short two track burst of something so wonderfully beautiful, melancholic, and ferocious that it demands repeated listens. On a high volume.
The group recently took the time to talk us through some inspirations behind the EP title and the two tracks on the EP.
Burrows & Other Hideouts
The title of the EP Burrows & Other Hideouts refers to the safe place that most of us search for so that we can hide from the daunting aspects of life, such as our own thoughts constantly attacking ourselves and never letting us appreciate how far we’ve come, the fear of death, or being scared of not being good enough, of being a disappointment to the people we love, the meaninglessness of anything we do in life, etc.
We chose the word “Burrows” because it was a strong symbol, as for animals living in the wild, it literally represents a place where they cannot be killed. But a safe place can take many forms (“and other hideouts”), someone’s “arms” or for us, writing music playing it to people. In a sense our EP is the materialisation of what our safe place is, which is why it made sense to give it that name. It’s also what the cover represents, a sort of humanised tree burrow with a city pouring out of it.
Grab the EP via Bandcamp.
Find Chalk Hands on Facebook.