Big Stir Records proudly announces the return of Akron, Ohio's power pop/jangle rock/postpunk heroes LIBRARIANS WITH HICKEYS, with the first single to herald a brand new album due in 2024. “Hello Operator” will hit all digital platforms accompanied by an all-new video on August 23, and it's up for pre-order and pre-save now.
On the strength of their two acclaimed albums with Big Stir Records – their 2020 debut Long Overdue and the 2022 breakthrough Handclaps & Tambourines – LIBRARIANS WITH HICKEYS can lay claim to being one of the brightest lights on the label's roster (and the global guitar pop scene at large). The new single readily demonstrates why. The sound of a rotary phone kicks off the tune, followed by the twin jangly melodic guitar attack of LWH's core duo RAY CARMEN and MIKE CROOKER and an irresistible introductory “Hello! Hello! Hello!” paired with one of the most instantly memorable hooks in the band's considerably catchy catalog. And for all its radio-friendly accessibility, the track also introduces the key themes underlying the band's sophisticated new material. Mike Crooker explains:
“It's a tribute to Ray’s early 1960s small town childhood. While his siblings were at school, his father at work, and his mother outside talking to the neighbors, four-year-old Ray – in his inquisitive but admittedly not nearly as smart Young Sheldon phase – would pick up the phone and talk to the operator. Ray did this daily for quite some time. When the operator didn’t hear from him for a few days, she called the house to see if everything was OK. That’s when Ray’s mom found out he had been talking to the operator every day. Of course! Ha! It’s the makings of a sitcom (producers take note!)”
“While the song is set in the early 1960s, the lyrics reflect the current chaotic state of the world, and the loneliness of modern existence,” adds Carmen. “Everybody’s talking, but nobody’s saying anything, to quote both Nilsson and David Byrne. Don’t you wish the whole world – to add Julian Cope to the mix -- would shut its mouth?”
Is it power pop? It certainly is! In an alternate universe, this would have been a huge hit for The Monkees. In this universe, it means that LIBRARIANS WITH HICKEYS are back, baby. And there's much more to come before the year is out.
Can you hear us now? Good.