Ethan Luck

After his time with several different bands (drummer for Relient K, guitarist for Demon Hunter), photographer-turned-solo-artist Ethan Luck has provided us with his third EP of raw, rock tunes. Two EPs from 2013, Greetings from the Garage and Wounds and Fears, established a garage-punk style and solidified the kind of music we’d hear from the musician. With Hard Seas, Ethan has branched out a bit from the garage, with a little more raw country, rockabilly flavor. It’s still the Hunt we’ve come to enjoy, just more structured and mature. The songs and lyrical content tend to stick to the simpler style found on his first two EPs, and an opener like “At Least I’m Yours” sets the tone for the five tracks. According to the Bandcamp page (where you can download all of Ethan’s solo music for free), the songs on Hard Seas came from dealing with a lot of anxiety over the past year. “Can’t Sleep Sound” is a perfect example of this anxiety, and it’s appropriate there’s a softer moment in the middle of the instrumental bridge, acting almost as a nap for someone who can’t sleep.

It’s not the simplistic part that is the best thing, it’s how personal an artist like Hunt can be with this EP. Songs like “When I Let You Down” are really for people who have gone through similar things, and gives them the simple message that they’re not alone. We all go through these things. It’s about what we do in response. Expect more of what Hunt is good at, with some country twang thrown in for good measure.