Crisp drumming, menacing bass, brooding vocals, raucous guitar accents...
…Anti Social Social, which opens this rural Victoria-based trio’s tremendous latest album, Circulator, is impossible to ignore.
Listeners will feel like they’re in the recording studio, rocking-out alongside the band. Better brace yourself for that blistering guitar solo, too!
HUGERNAUT
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- 9 October – Bar Open
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We can see why Hugo Horvat’s guitar teacher – Terry Murry, a retired neighbour from up the street who played lead guitar on The Wiggles’ first two albums and has performed with musical legends such as Tom Jones, Randy Crawford, Tommy Emmanuel and Jimmy Barnes – declared of his pupil, “I believe he could be the next David Bowie!”
Hugernaut play as one unit, with effortless synergy, so it comes as no surprise that all three band members are blood-related: Horvat’s older brother Gerard smashes the drumkit and their dad, Gabriel, plays bass.
The initial plan was for the brothers to move to Melbourne and follow their musical dreams. But when the global pandemic struck, they remained in regional Victoria and kept it in the family.
Hugo and Gerard are very proud to have their dad on board, and believe the multigenerational lineup gives them an edge.
“Almost everybody we meet believes I am just a friend of theirs or a bit of an older sibling,” says Gabriel of his close bond with his sons.
“The only difference is I literally saw both of them come into this world and we’ve all known each other all our lives.”
It all started back in 2020, with Hugo and Gerard jamming on covers in their isolated rural Victorian country farmhouse. During Covid lockdowns, the brothers honed their chops and decided to form a yet-to-be-named band.
After completing his final year of high school in his pyjamas (over video link), Hugo headed to JMC Academy in Melbourne to study sound engineering while Gerard perfected his craft – drumming up a storm and undoubtedly disrupting their quiet country neighbourhood.
Over the next few years, the brothers built their own studio – Asbestos Studio, near Castlemaine – and started writing songs.
While searching for their own distinctive sound, they experimented with everything from “blue-eyed soul to jazzy country and post-punk rock”.
By the end of 2024, they had recorded two EPs and two albums composed entirely of original material.
Then halfway through 2025, they found their sound: “on the slightly less distorted end of indie alternative rock, often with more of a pop-rock feel.”
Ten fresh tracks, which would become Circulator, were composed to reflect the brothers’ real-life experiences: “relationship breakdowns, the vulnerability of everyday existence and the day-to-day grind of social media.”
When Hugernaut approached esteemed producer Oscar Dawson (Teen Jesus And The Jean Teasers, Alex Lahey, The Rions) to mix their record, he jumped at the chance to work with them. Circulator, which was recorded to capture the magic of their live performance style, was completed earlier this year.
Designed to listen to in its entirety, from start to finish, Circulator encapsulates various moods and emotions. From the cacophonous, stacks-on energy of Quid Pro Quo’s intro to the desolate, gently strummed closing track, In The Rain (“Is there anybody out there who understands?”), Hugernaut’s arrangements are nuanced and emotionally expansive.
Jangly guitar riffs enliven Dream (think: Blur’s Song 2), So Long This Year features glorious blood harmonies and a measured, complex drum pattern underscores Rip & Run. Pleaser, the album’s penultimate track, even brings You Really Got Me by The Kinks to mind.
Having previously only performed in front of small, regional audiences, Hugernaut now feel primed and ready to launch in the Big Smoke. So what can Melbourne audiences expect from their upcoming shows? “With some big-arse amps and not a lot of monologging, it’s all about how the music makes you feel,” Gerard enlightens. “There are no flashy stunts, no flashin’ a lot of skin. It’s all about the music.”
We get why they’re called Hugernaut – not only is their frontman named Hugo, but also their sound is really huge for a three-piece!
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