The Bad Penny (beta)

Charles Bukowski famously said: “Potential doesn’t mean a thing. You’ve got to do it. Almost every baby in a crib has more potential than I have.”

Whether or not Andrew Becker knows Bukowski’s axiom, he might’ve had tongue in cheek when naming his solo project “Human Potential.” But, sarcasm or not, Becker is continuing to raise the bar — or pushing his potential even further, as it were.

The former drummer for Dischord Records’ Medications, Los Angeles-based Becker formed Human Potential about a decade ago so he could do his own thing. Each Human Potential release demonstrates Becker’s ever-expanding tool kit of musicianship. His latest single and video, “Hoosi, No!” dropped today, and they’re no exception.

The song will appear on Human Potential’s album of the same name, due February 24 on What Delicate Recordings. The effort marks Becker’s fifth solo outing.

The experimental song features an unusual collection of chanting voices in its first half. Percussion and other instruments materialize in the second part of “Hoosi, No!”

Unlike countless solo artists who clutter their songs with self-centered grievances, Becker’s songwriting includes a more fantastical component. “Hoosi, No!” is no exception.

It tells an imaginative, action-packed, fictional story replete with train-hopping, the underground world of crime and a robbery scheme gone awry. And he manages to detail the entire mini-saga in only three minutes and 15 seconds. The late Johnny Cash, Mountain Goats, Nick Cave and others would applaud Becker’s rare storytelling talent.

Becker told the Bad Penny the story behind “Hoosi, No!’:

“After crossing paths while train hopping around the American Southwest, small-time grifters Lionel and Skeeter plot a series of petty thefts at arcane, global landmarks — striking up an unlikely romance in the process,” Becker said. “But, after a scheme goes horribly awry, Lionel reconsiders the outlaw life, causing the couple’s once unbreakable bond to fracture.”

Becker continued: “As their relationship teeters on the brink of collapse, Lionel must confront the dark secrets of his past — and is forced to choose between the woman he loves and his one way out of the criminal underworld.”

Check out the video here:

For more background on Human Potential’s new single, go here.

This entry was posted on 02/07/2023 at 9:05 am and is filed under Interviews with tags Human Potential. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.