Since the early ’00s, Hellogoodbye has been infecting Orange County and its surrounding areas with its up-beat melodies and lyrics just as “cutesie” as the little monsters on its debut album cover.
Using the Internet and word-of-mouth, Hellogoodbye became an underground sensation among its hometown fans. Hellogoodbye is made up of Forrest Kline on vocals, Jesse Kurvink on keyboards, Marcus Cole on bass and Chris Profeta on drums.
In 2004, the band released a six-track self-titled EP for free download on its Web site. The EP, which contained the bubbly first single “Shimmy Shimmy Quarter Turn,” won Hellogoodbye MTV2’s Dew Circuit Breakout contest – a short stint on MTV’s Real World Austin may have helped as well.
The Huntington Beach natives finally released their much anticipated debut album, “Zombies! Aliens! Vampires! Dinosaurs!,” in early August. It was instantly a hit among fans of indie label Drive-Thru Records and became the highest debut in the label’s history.
Half the album contains songs once released as demos and comes from the EP, which seem mildly disappointing at first glance of the cover. However, each song is made new again through the band’s remixed composition.
Z!A!V!D! is so sugary and contagious, the listener would believe the band recorded in an abandoned candy store.
It is hard to believe “Touchdown Turnaround” could get any more fun and bubbly than its original demo, but Kline’s melodic electronic arrangements show growth and his continuous positive outlook on life.
Despite its prominence over the various MTV stations, “Z!A!V!D!” recreates the magic of fun and innocent pop-rock about first loves and past loves without the convoluted commercial imagery.
“I guess you can say it’s the soundtrack to being my girlfriend,” Kline said.
Miraculously, it’s a lover’s soundtrack without the deliberate mention of cliche heartaches and blatant infidelity.
Even the most disheartening of songs on the album, “Homewrecker,” is put in the most positive light musically. Throughout the record, but especially in this song, Kline carefully chooses and separates each word to convey his fervor without tearful, melodramatic emotion.
Hellogoodbye has gone from selling out the tiny stage of Anaheim’s Chain Reaction to selling out various venues throughout the nation this fall. Kline and gang began their first headlining tour yesterday in Las Vegas with Ozma, Cute Is What We Aim For and Peachcake.
Catch the foursome this weekend along with over 40 other bands at The Bamboozle Left Festival hosted at Cal Poly Pomona.
