Tuesday, 27 Jan 2009
I grew up in Champaign, IL. One of the bands I followed and considered a favorite in the mid to late 90s was Hum. In fact, when the internet was first getting its widespread legs, I carried on a good couple weeks on conversation with one of their members via e-mail. Wish I still had that correspondence to go along with this post.
I recently dusted off and rediscovered my copy of You’d Prefer An Astronaut, thanks, in part, to Cadillac for including their song “Stars” in a 2007 commercial. I also uncovered an old copy of Hum’s performance at Milwaukee’s Summerfest from 1998. Hopefully more than just myself will remember these guys. They did a few shows around the 1st of the year, so I’m hoping they’ll swing through Wisconsin for a date or two this year.
Update: Download is over, TWO weeks only.
Hum :: Summerfest, Milwaukee (July 5, 1998)
Download/Listen:
1. I’d Like Your Hair Long
2. Green to Me
3. Suicide Machine
4. Comin’ Home
5. I Hate It Too
6. Stars
7. Iron Clad Lou
Buy: Hum – You’d Prefer an Astronaut
++
Myspace: Hum
January 27th, 2009 at 8:36 am
Wow! I forgot all about these guys. I discovered them through a free “giveaway” disc that BMG music sent me back in the day. “You’d Prefer An Astronaut” was an incredible disc. I’m going to have to rediscover this group and pull out my copy…
January 27th, 2009 at 8:56 am
Agreed. Big smile on my face when I just saw this in my RSS Reader. One of the first “indie” bands I discovered. Shit, I was in 5th grade when “Train To Mars” absolutely overran my life. Good times. Definitely a stepping stone for me into a whole new world. Great post.
January 27th, 2009 at 9:06 am
Second Best Post Ever.
January 27th, 2009 at 9:34 am
Wow! This really takes me back. I remember seeing these guys play back in ’96 in Milwaukee somewhere near the Marquette campus. These guys were great live. I can’t wait to listen to the Summerfest set above.
January 27th, 2009 at 9:45 am
Oh yeah! Such good stuff. I got into them via my heavy-metal friend, who had a soft spot only for Hum.
I suggest we all request Hum songs from our local college radio stations in honor of this most excellent post.
January 27th, 2009 at 10:56 am
Excellent! I was just thinking about this album over the weekend. One of the first records I bought in my college years.
January 27th, 2009 at 11:46 am
Hum used to play here all the time back in the ’90s. Saw them at the Unicorn many times. Awesome!
January 28th, 2009 at 12:24 am
i’ve never commented here before, but i just wanted to say thanks for this particular post. i was actually in the front row of this show (they opened up for Smashing Pumpkins), and over the years it has gone down as one of my favorite shows of all time. i’m half tempted to completely pass on the live audio just to retain my memory of the show as being otherworldly and flawless, but i’ll probably end up listening to it anyway. too good to pass up.
January 28th, 2009 at 2:16 am
Downward is Heavenward has remained one of my all time favorite albums to this day, and I think it is probably the most underrated album of the 90s, by an incredibly underrated band. Thank you for posting this.
January 29th, 2009 at 2:15 pm
I too was at this show and have always held it as one of my top 5 concert experiences. I remember the crowd not paying much attention to Hum which is pretty common treatment for many openers at Summerfest, but I remember they played a great set. Pumpkins were on their Adore tour and played some really interesting mixes of their songs that night. I am thinking you probably have that show, but if you don’t let me know and I will get you a copy. I also remember getting out of the show and running over to the rock stage to catch the tail end of Spacehog. Thanks for posting this!
January 31st, 2009 at 12:00 pm
That was the first tape I ever bought. I swear I was the only kid who really liked them in my town. Man I wish I could find that.
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:42 pm
i was talking to a friend yesterday about their show on New Year’s eve in Chicago… i hadn’t thought about Hum in forever and low and behold! I saw them at Summerfest sometime in the mid 90′s at the Laser 103 stage and i remember being slightly disappointed – i remember the lead singer breaking a string and it taking forever to fix… anyway, thanks for the trip down memory lane