Army vs. Navy II

Girl Party s/t
(Whisk-Hutzel Records)

One of Knoxville’s most versatile musicians, Pete Hoffecker is a sophisticated songwriter and multi-instrumentalist on these homemade recordings of one-man projects Army vs. Navy and Girl Party, written, recorded and produced by the man himself. Hoffecker is also a talented MC and DJ, performing as alter-ego Megalon Esquire, mad freestyle rapper, soul and funk spinner and enthusiast of hip-hop history and culture.

These sensibilities are obvious throughout tracks on both Army vs. Navy II and the self-titled Girl Party release, with steady beats, danceable rhythms and strong lyricism. But if their feet are dancing, they’re nonetheless planted firmly in the indie rock realm with sometimes screechy and distorted guitar riffs, gorgeous Hoffecker-squared and -cubed harmonies and vocals and melancholy melodies that kind of break your heart and make you smile at the same time. He may kick my ass for the comparisons, but on various tracks, he manages to present songs reminiscent of early-era Devo, Beck, Pinback, Aesop Rock, Versus and Dilated Peoples, sometimes all at the same time, but without ever sounding anything other than totally original.

These are lush and stimulating songs that invariably appeal to any random person of any random musical leaning I play them for, perfect for summer drives at night with the windows down, equally perfect for Friday nights and Sunday afternoons and always seeming to meld with the good and bad times, like a musical mood ring.