Creamer - “Hideaway”

SXSW 2022 - OEB Score: 8; Popularity Index: 1

Pairs Well With…Queen, ELO, Bleachers

Listening to Creamer’s music is like hopping in a time machine, a contemporary artist heavily steeped in 70s psychedelic rock and producing piano-pop explorations with timeless precision. While this all feels throwback, it’s also wholly unique - Creamer’s adulation for songs that have stuck in our rock canon is endearing and impressive against their electronic-leaning peers. It is borderline audacious as well as Creamer points to 70s era fifty years later, but the Nashville artist’s instincts are well placed, bringing the bigness of that era up with reverence. There’s a reason classic rock has so much staying power and Creamer proves you don’t necessarily need to “evolve” if there’s still a place the flourish in which our rock forefathers have provided. Creamer has shared a few singles to follow up his self-titled debut, pointing to a possible sophomore effort heading into the future for this studied pastmaster. (Kevin McStravick)