Hammock Striving for the Transcendent: The Echoes Interview
The ambient guitar duo Hammock have become darlings of both the post-rock and ambient scenes. Yet, although they may attract a hipster audience, their music is imbued with Marc Byrd and Andrew Thompson’s evangelical upbringing and their subsequent rejection of much of that doctrine. It informs much of their new album, The Second Coming was a Moonrise.
Hammock’s Marc Byrd: In one Christian school that I grew up in, Wednesdays, we wore a pin-on tie with an eagle, an American flag, and a Bible printed on it. So I got a good dose of Christian nationalism too. I got suspended from that school several times.
That’s Marc Byrd of Hammock. I talk to them today about an album inspired by an acid trip, religion, politics and a love of sonic landscapes on Echoes.
The Second Coming was a Moonrise was the Echoes June CD of the Month. Read John Diliberto’s review.
| Start Time | Artist | Song Title | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday, Sept 21, 2026 – Echoes Program 2638A | |||
| First Half Hour | |||
| 0:01:01 | Hammock | We Close Our Eyes So We Can See | The Second Coming Was a Moonrise |
| 0:05:59 | David Helpling and Scott Reich | Shadows Stars and Dreams | Through the Thought Horizon |
| 0:11:04 | Eartheater | Crown Jewel | Crown Heavenly Body: If I’m the BottleYou’re the Message |
| 0:15:02 | Tori Amos | St. Teresa | In Times of Dragons |
| 0:21:10 | Michael Whalen | Out of Body | Standing Near Infinity |
| 0:29:30 | Feldman & Tiley | Kind (excerpt) | Protomensch |
| Second Half Hour | |||
| 0:30:00 | Interview: Hammock | ||
| 0:47:20 | Hammock | Sadness | The Second Coming Was a Moonrise |
| 0:51:37 | Hammock | The Second Coming Was a Moonrise | The Second Coming Was a Moonrise |
| 0:59:00 | Marcelo Zarvos | Two Birds (excerpt) | Ray Donovan |
| Third Half Hour | |||
| 1:01:00 | Hollan Holmes | Moebius Trip | The Sanctity of Rust |
| 1:06:00 | Unwed Sailor | Cinnamon | High Remembrance |
| 1:09:23 | Arlo Parks | Heaven | Ambiguous Desire |
| 1:13:39 | Tangerine Dream | Love on a Real Train 2026 | Night Trains & Cityscapes |
| 1:22:28 | Tom Caufield | Chamber Wolf | Quiet Modern |
| 1:29:30 | Lisa Bella Donna | Future Moves (excerpt) | Counterpoint |
| Fourth Half Hour | |||
| 1:30:00 | KARYYN | Mind Over Heart | Physic Love Universal Language (PULL) |
| 1:34:11 | Bluetech | On the Cusp of Dissolution | Petite Constellations |
| 1:37:39 | Kinobe | Star Crossed | Open Your Mind |
| 1:41:48 | break | ||
| 1:42:22 | Shelby Natasha | It Was Mine | It Was Mine |
| 1:46:27 | Boards of Canada | Arena Americanada | Inferno |
| 1:50:22 | Aukai + Vraell | Far | Meld |
| 1:53:51 | Marconi Union | Multiform III | Multiform: Ambient Transmissions Vol.3 |
Bill Bruford is one of the greatest drummers of our age, and certainly the greatest in Progressive Rock, playing with Yes, King Crimson, UK and Earthworks. He retired 13 years ago and got a Doctorate in music. He claims to not even touched the drums in that time. But live performance pulled him back in the form of a younger musician, guitarist Pete Roth. They meet in a new space.
Pete Roth: I have to admit up until I met Bill, I didn’t know what Bill was doing and then I learned very quickly that I was being treated to a very prestigious teacher.
Bill Bruford: We have different touchstones, different reference points. It’s not much good, me talking to Pete about King Crimson. or Yes or anything like that. He doesn’t know what that music is. So I like that.
He’s a giant of progressive rock, but he’s only a sideman (wink-wink) with Pete Roth. We’ll be talking to them about their cross-generational approach to music on their album, Group Chat, and why Bruford came out of retirement after 13 years.
Hear our 2018 Interview with Bill Bruford
| Start Time | Artist | Song Title | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday, Sept 22, 2026 – Program 2638B | |||
| First Half Hour | |||
| 0:01:00 | Sun’s Signature | Bluedusk | Sun’s Signature EP |
| 0:06:00 | David Helpling & Scott Reich | The Simplest of Miracles | Through the Thought Horizon |
| 0:13:22 | Anima | Sacred Love | Universal Womb |
| 0:20:40 | Antaeus/Madame Gandhi/Cafe De Anatolia/amani sol | Kyrie | Ekta |
| 0:23:08 | Deepspace | Atlas 8 Arid Sector: I Think I Found Something Beautiful | The Atlas Sector |
| 0:29:30 | Immersion | A Long Way to Brooklyn (excerpt) | WTF??? |
| Second Half Hour | |||
| 0:30:00 | Interview: Pete Roth and Bill Bruford | ||
| 0:45:46 | Pete Roth Trio | Dancing With Grace | Full Circle |
| 0:51:27 | Harald Grosskopf | Flow | Glitches Brew |
| 0:59:00 | Bluetech | Nightvale (excerpt) | Sci-Fi Lullabyes |
| Third Half Hour | |||
| 1:01:00 | Tortoise | Night Gang | Touch |
| 1:06:00 | Michael Hedges | Silent Anticipations | Live On The Double Planet |
| 1:08:58 | Arlo Parks | Heaven | Ambiguous Desires |
| 1:13:17 | Gaspar Claus | Amour constrictor (fugue) | Cells |
| 1:18:22 | AvaWaves | Seahorse | Chrysalis |
| 1:21:27 | Caroline Polachek | On The Beach | On the Beach (Single) |
| 1:25:19 | Sine | Adrift (Oine Remix) | Adrift (Oine Remix) Single |
| 1:29:30 | Shambhu | Resilience (excerpt) | Lotus Dream |
| Fourth Half Hour | |||
| 1:30:00 | Peter Phippen & Eric “the” Taylor | Time Table | Two by Twilight |
| 1:35:27 | Austra | Anywayz (Clean Edit) | Hirudin |
| 1:39:07 | Lena Natalia | The Time Before Us | The Time Before Us |
| 1:41:39 | Agnes Obel | 05 Blood so Red | The Meaning of Flowers |
| 1:47:30 | Break | ||
| 1:48:38 | Hammock | Everything You Love Is Buried in the ground or Scattered into Space | The Second Coming Was a Moonrise |
| 1:52:10 | Quiet Resonance | Silent Turbulence | Flying Against the Wind. |