We Are Hex is a weird band. I don’t mean weird in a Captain Beefheart way, with various experimental noises bouncing around the place, of course. I mean that when I listen to their latest record, Hail The Goer, I don’t know who they sound like. This has two side effects. First, the music critic in me gets annoyed. “I’ve been listening to music for years,” I think to myself, “Why don’t I recognize their influences? Why can’t I guess who they’ll be on tour with soon?” You have to understand, I pride myself on this sort of thing. Secondly, and this is the most important one, the music fan in me gets excited.If I was really pressed to describe We Are Hex’s sound, I guess I could tell you that they’re an energetic rock quartet with some post-hardcore influences. I could tell you that, but I don’t really want to. It wouldn’t give you a real picture of the way they sound; it’d just let you know that they probably have an At The Drive-In CD somewhere in their record collection.

All I really feel like I can say about We Are Hex is that they’re dirty. No, not in a Cinemax-after-midnight sort of way, but in the sense that they’re not concerned about sounding polished or refined or even particularly well rehearsed. Trust me, I mean this in a good way. Songs like the album closer “Cutter/Giver” and “Birthplace Of The Mystics” have an amazingly raw tone to them that perfectly compliments the band’s pure, unprocessed energy.

I’d imagine that the absolute best way to experience them would be live, at a basement show, packed in with as many other fans as you can possibly fit in a house without it resulting in mass crushing-related deaths. It’d probably also make a great soundtrack to the best horror movie that has yet to be made.

I imagine that Hail the Goer would appeal to just about anyone with some familiarity with the post-hardcore scene. Chaotic stops and starts, amazing and often harsh female vocals backed by creepier male voices, and an overall raw, compelling sound make this a worthwhile and interesting release.