Opening on tour for Weathers and Almost Monday, HOKO took the stage at The Bowery Ballroom to put on a fantastic show in the origin place of the band- New York City. HOKO, comprised of lead singer Nathaniel Hoho and guitarist Jesse Kotansky, is a band that emphasizes the possibilities for a new wave of alternative pop music. Every track from their setlist left the audience cheering for more of their unique sound.
From the first song, lead singer Nathaniel captured the attention of every audience member. He danced across the stage and into the crowd to capture everyone’s interest, while maintaining a perfect rhythm. The incredible music persisted, but crowd engagement set HOKO apart from other acts I have seen.
The band performed their debut single “OK OK” at the third slot on their setlist, the perfect time to amp up the crowd. “OK OK” was released in February 2020 and has pulled in over four million Spotify streams since then. The track has an incredibly danceable beat and has been playing on a loop in my head since leaving the venue. The song’s technological indie feel had every audience member dancing along to the band’s own funky moves.
HOKO’s entire set created a fun and inclusive concert environment, and the band maintained their personal image. A few other tracks included on the setlist for this tour were “Candy Eyes“, “I Feel Like I’m Falling“, and “Hellogoodbye“- each one proving once again the genre-bending talents that HOKO possesses. At one point during their set, lead guitarist Jesse honed in on his childhood accomplishments adding a touch of violin to a track. The instrument is beyond uncommon in the alternative scene, but this obscure and beautiful addition was exemplary of HOKO’s genre-defiant successes.
To conclude the brilliant set, HOKO performed their latest single “Ephemera“. With an upbeat tempo reliant on strings and synth, it is impossible to keep yourself from dancing while “Ephemera” is playing. With such fun music playing, you might miss the deeper meaning of the track. The chorus begs the post-breakup question “How do you do it?/How do you forget?” and goes beyond the love lost. The audience exists in the music, forgetting (lyrical) meaning in reality. “Ephemera” is memorabilia of relationships past and the emotional confusion through each ending. Its position as the last song of the set did not go unnoticed, reminding the audience that their time with the band was beautiful, even as it came to an end.
With every track, HOKO solidified its reputation as a band that will persist in questioning genre boundaries and exceeding expectations in doing so. Although their current tour is concluding, pay attention to HOKO’s next moves as the masters of genre immersion.