DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEXAS
posted in: Artist Features • Music News • Rock
One of these things is not like the other: Oso Closo
Big, burly men don’t normally write tunes called The Friendship Song, or say things like, Speak freely and know that I take joy in your voice without the slightest trace of irony. Which is part of what makes Adrian Hulet such an alluring artist. Sporting a beard as feral as Captain Lou Albano’s (RIP), Hulet doesn’t look like your average emo waif. And with his soulful, booming voice, he doesn’t sound like him either. But as frontman for the Texas group Oso Closo, Hulet delivers grandiose, high-concept rock saturated with earnestness and compassion.
Melding jazz, metal, orchestra music and piano rock into complex, polyphonic arrangements, it’s impossible to predict where Oso Closo will lead you. In Song for the Morning pianos and guitars lurch in unison, before breaking off into a minimalist melody while Hulet intones For a dreamer night’s the only time of day. Just when you think you know where he’s headed, backup soul singers chime in, or a string quartet swells into the forefront. In The Friendship Song, Styx guitars noodle against pounding drums and cascading keys. The meaty melodic hooks, expansive scope and lightning-quick changes make the music feel as epic as Broadway. Then again, everything’s bigger in Texas.
