Sean Hood — 9 June 2021 on Rocket Shop Radio Hour
Sean Hood joined host Tom Proctor in the Big Heavy World studio for a conversation about songwriting, maturing musically, the country genre, and returning to the stage after COVID-19. Based out of Burlington, Hood writes and performs songs under the name “Eeastern Mountain Time” — a moniker for what he calls on his website the “kinda-country band” made up of him and a rotating group of musicians.
Quickly into his set, it became clear that Hood is intrigued by the murky and incomprehensible sides of being human. “It’s cold outside / but we don’t mind / it’s almost time to forget the time,” Hood sang in his first song and most recent single, “A Little Bit of Rain.” Sean Hood is keen on nudging listeners to look deeper into their personal lives and reality to make meaning- — even if that means “forgetting the time.”
The performance of this song showed how Hood balances humility with a clear desire to write songs that are poignant, idiosyncratic, and fuel personal and social change. His music evokes Hank Williams’s classicism while equally embodying Son Volt’s edgy maturity and Bob Dylan’s mysticism. These influences seemed to trickle from his personality; Hood was equal parts measured and vulnerable in his down-to-earth reflections with Tom.
Hood made a point to emphasize Bob Dylan as a major influence after he played a stripped-down version of “A Little Bit of Rain” to open his set. “When I was 20, I was living in San Francisco and I was very, very obsessed with everything Bob Dylan,” he told Tom. His infatuation with Dylan’s artistry led him to pound out “A Little Bit of Rain” on an old typewriter when he was 20. Hood dusted off the song during quarantine with the help of friend and musical collaborator Willoughby Morse. Despite an entrancing acoustic chord progression, the song is cloaked in darkly surreal imagery that could be the work of a seasoned poet. Hood both spooks and stupefies listeners in this song, with lyrics like, “All the trees grew through the windows / one day ’round Halloween / And the oven in an outrage / started spitting gasoline.”
The performance of Hood’s next song felt akin to a cowboy standing up to read a poem at an open mic night. Under the working title “Two For the Road”, the song married twang with Beatnik sensibilities, particularly apparent in lyrics like: “I can find your heartbeat in the white noise.” Hood told Tom that this country song arose out of “a moment of gratitude” he felt for the safety he found among his family and in the state of Vermont during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I felt so lucky to be here [in Vermont],” he said.
When the conversation turned to reflections on quarantine, Hood was personable and honest. “I would have loved to have taken that time and just worked on writing… but I found that that just wasn’t really true for me in this last year and a half,” he said. “The [songs] I was working on felt hard to find and finish.” One could feel the energy of the conversation loosen up even more when Hood phrased it bluntly: “As a musician, I always like to believe that if I didn't have to work… if I just had all the time in the world I’m sure I’d write the best songs but then [I came] to find out that [in fact] I watch a lot of movies.”
Yet another victory for Netflix over the Creative Process during a global pandemic.
After performing “Two For the Road,” Hood sheepishly addressed his twangy tonality in the song. “I try not to do it a lot, [but] I just do it. It’s just what sound comes out,” he lightly chuckled. While part of Hood has resigned to his country music muse, the other part is eager to experiment with a new sonic landscape. His upcoming record, which was being remastered for release at the time of the interview, departs a bit from his country roots. “I really had to work hard [on this new album] to get away from my natural inclination to go towards this kind of country template,” he said.
Hood approaches his stylistic exploration with intentionality. However, he also looks to make a difference beyond the lyrics he writes. Last July Hood released the compilation album Picture Cherry Blues: Rarities & Outtakes (2010-2020), with all proceeds donated to Black Lives Matter of Greater Burlington and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. After reflecting upon how he could support local racial justice efforts, Hood realized a new purpose for his music. “One of the tools I have is songs, and I have a lot of them,” he told Tom.
“I wanted to utilize the skill that I have and see if I could use that to help the cause and support the movement that was happening in [Burlington] and across the whole country.”
Hood’s conversation with Tom closed with a discussion about his transition back to live performances as COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. He performed live for the first time this month, on July 11th on the Bristol Rec Fields in Bristol, Vermont. Prior to the outbreak of COVID-19 in the region, Hood had planned over 10 tour dates. He didn’t seem particularly worried about losing these shows. In fact, Hood expressed a deep sense of calm to Tom, noting that he actually isn’t looking to hop on to as many stages as possible as in-person concerts become more common.
“I’m looking forward to taking it a little slow and spending the summer, most of the summer, just wiping off some of the dust,” he said.
Listen to Sean Hood on his website, his Bandcamp account, and on all other music streaming platforms. Be sure to look out for the release of his next record on the Burst and Bloom label. Sean Hood will be performing in Exeter, New Hampshire next month as part of a release show for a February, 2021 compilation album he was featured on titled Bloom Country, Vol. 1. Catch up with his EMT incarnation at facebook.com/EasternMountainTime
Text by Noah Hochfelder.
Photo by James Lockridge
