There seem to be few people who were lucky enough to hear the Hummingbirds' debut, loveBUZZ, when it came out, and fewer still know anything about it today. That's a shame, because it's one of the best jangle-pop records I've ever heard, and that's saying something.

The band hailed from Australia, and was built around the boy-girl vocals of guitarists Simon Holmes and Alannah Russack and bassist Robyn St. Clare. Drummer Mark Temple rounded out the foursome. The disc was produced by Mitch Easter (yes, I know, that's two OOTS selections in a row from him), who ably captured the bands shimmering melodies and luscious harmonies amid the buzz of guitar and insistent drums.

At its best, as on songs like the opener, "Blush," "Tuesday" and "Word Gets Around," the singers vocals mesh to create ultra-catchy choruses that are full of hooks. The only drawback of the disc is that it becomes too much. It's overlong at 14 songs, and probably should have been trimmed to a leaner 11 or 12.

Sadly, the disc went nowhere. There was an Australia-only follow-up, Va Va Voom (that I just learned of and haven't heard), a few EPs before and after this disc and a career-summarizing greatest hits disc, but that's it. St. Clare popped up in Nic Dalton's Godstar (a potential future OOTS pick), and Holmes apparently fronted the subsequent band Fragile. Holmes did surface in 2002 for a solo set and seems to have played a part in the band Her Name in Lights. Otherwise, there is little out there about the band or its members.

For one brief shining moment, however, the Hummingbirds released what has become one of the best kept secrets in pop.

MP3: Blush
MP3: Tuesday

Next week: Joe Henry - Scar

Labels: music, OOTS