All About Hem

If you're looking for news about the band Hem, you're in the right place!

June 29, 2008

Long Time No News

Checking in to say that I have not been neglecting the site. There simply has not been much Hem news since the band has been in the studio working on new songs. I've been updating the new album page with info as it becomes available, but there's still not much there. Stay tuned!

April 30, 2008

New Song #4!

The last of the new songs Hem is generously posting for free download at their site is available today. Go grab Gently Down The Stream and imagine where Sally should be singing "life is but a dream" or "merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily" (because that would be awesome, don't you think?). You can see the recent Liberty Mutual TV "election" commercial that uses part of the song here.

April 23, 2008

New Song #3!

The third of four new songs Hem is releasing this month is now available for free download. Flutter off to get Bird Song! Then, come back here to read about the song meaning (straight from the songwriter to All About Hem - thanks, Dan!), to see the lyrics (which are probably mostly right), and to click over to the Hem Message Board (for chatter about the new tunes). You can also check out the recent Liberty Mutual TV commercial using part of the song here.

April 16, 2008

New Song #2!

The second of four new songs Hem is releasing this month is now available for free download. Go get The World Is Outside now! Then go talk about it in Hem's Forum! You can find lyrics here, and you can see the Liberty Mutual TV ad using part of the song here.

Discography Page Overhaul

The discography page has a new design that hopefully makes it easier to navigate. I changed it a few weeks ago and thought I would point it out in the news. Everything there is the same as before, although in the redesign I added new entries for a KTBG compilation and a placeholder for Hem's new album that has some information now and will be updated whenever more details become available.

April 9, 2008

New Song!

Every Wednesday for the next 4 weeks Hem will be releasing a new song for free download at their website. They'll be the full versions of the 4 songs used in the recent Liberty Mutual TV ads you can read about below in various March news updates. Available today is Things Are Not Perfect In Out Yard, used in the wallet commercial. It's a wonderful song, and you need to go get it right now. You can find the lyrics here and song meaning here. The meaning is a drawing posted at Hem's blog about 2 1/2 years ago and is more inspiration or songwriting brainstorming than meaning, but the meanings page seemed the best fit. Enjoy!

March 31, 2008

November 3, 2007 New York Show

Here's a video of Hem playing "An Easy One" at the Highline Ballroom last November 3. It's by James Collier, who also shot the footage in the "Not California" video in the previous news update. I knew I saw somebody filming or photographing a lot during that show! You can find a permanent link to this video as well as concert pictures and the show's setlist at the 2007 tour archive.

March 25, 2008

"Not California" Video

There's a new video for Hem's song "Not California." Enjoy! The concert footage is from the band's November 3, 2007 New York show.

March 12, 2008

June 3, 2006 Atlanta Show

Click on the little preview to the left to see some new pictures from Hem's June 3, 2006 show in Atlanta, GA. The new ones start with the last photo in the 4th row, or you can click here to start with the first new image. You can find a permanent link to these pictures at the 2006 tour archive and the concert photos archive. (Thanks, Geof!)

June 5, 2006 Charlotte Show

Continue your trip down memory lane with new pictures from Hem's June 5, 2006 show in Charlotte, NC. Click on the little picture to see all the shots, with the new ones being the last two. These pictures are also kept at the 2006 tour archive and the concert photos archive. (Thanks again, Geof!)

March 9, 2008

New Commercial Songs

I now have song names to go along with the new TV commercials for Liberty Mutual that use Hem's music. (Hooray! Thank you!) They are "Bird Song" (the soccer ad), "Gently Down The Stream" (the election ad), "The World Is Outside" (the snowballs ad), and "Things Are Not Perfect In Our Yard" (the wallet ad). Thank goodness at least one of the new songs seemingly continues Hem's water obsession.

March 8, 2008

June 5, 2006 Charlotte Show

Click here to download a recording of Hem's June 5, 2006 show in Charlotte, NC (you might need to register first). The 2006 tour archive has the setlist and pictures from the show here. It's always nice to hear "new" Hem, particularly when it includes the unreleased "Don't Fence Me In," the rarely played "Redwing," and my personal live obsession "Leave Me Here." (Thanks, Geof!)

March 3, 2008

New Liberty Mutual Commercials

Watch new commercials with Hem's music! The 4 largely instrumental ads are titled Election, Snowballs, Soccer, and Wallet. Once I know the names of the songs that go with each one (someone knows - email me!) they'll be here in the news.

March 2, 2008

New Gallery Photos

Check out a dozen new pictures at Hem's gallery. The new ones are the first (leftmost) 12 pictures. I don't know when they're from because they are tragically unlabeled, but they're from different times since some are from the studio and some are from the road. UPDATE: The studio pictures are from the Home Again, Home Again sessions, and the tour pictures are from the summer/fall 2006 tour.

March 1, 2008

Billboard Article

Click here to read a new Hem article in today's Billboard magazine including words from the band about their current and future projects. The biggest pieces of news are a new album this summer and 4 new songs on the way for a series of new Liberty Mutual TV commercials (following the first Half Acre ad and the second The Part Where You Let Go ad). Those 4 songs will be available for free download as well as be on the album. Hooray! You can find a permanent link to this article at the interviews archive. (Thanks Rachel and Nettwerk!)

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