"We hate talking about it." Is the frank admission of vocalist, Shawn Steven, when asked about the genre of his band The Hague. When he and childhood friend, drummer Jesse Tranfo, formed their band in 2009 they wanted to play music that wouldn't be bound by titles or genre restrictions. The craft comes first, labels can be sorted through later. The Hague have undergone a series of creative changes over its years together that could only be described in geologic terms. Long studio sessions perfecting their sound are like rock being cut into a new shape by a steady stream, changes in direction sudden like a tectonic shift. New members have joined on for a tour, for a record, and then fallen away, tired of the wear of life of a touring band. The Hague's sound mimics the world around us on a more immediate, internal level and their 6th studio album (Self Titled) is a beautiful example of collaborators in harmony creating a new landscape. "I guess we've just never been ready to quit," muses Tranfo, reflecting on the revolving door of musicians that have joined and then left the band. "We're still writing, still touring, because it still feels good and it's fun." Along with recent addition bassist Matt Thompson, Steven and Tranfo have distilled their talents into a more cohesive sound. Indeed, this is the longest they have taken in songwriting and production. The emphasis being quality over quantity. Steven begins with the seed of an idea and in the studio it takes root and buds. In search of a more organic sounding record The Hague went with long time friend and collaborator Brandon Eggleston to produce the record, opting to record as much of it live as possible. "We wanted the record to sound like it's happening live," said Tranfo. S/T took nearly 2 years from conception to completion in the studio. "It's the longest amount of time we've ever spent working with one group of songs," say Steven, "but these songs are truly the most representative album of who we are that we've ever made." The five tracks of the album speak to the more refined process of collaboration. The lyrics are are open and honest yet refreshingly devoid of any saccharine bullshit. The arrangements by turns peak in frantic bursts and then dip into thoughtfulness. Every track speaks of the inevitability of change and the struggle to cope with it. This was a deliberate choice. "I kept coming back to that episode of The Twilight Zone," Steven says. "You know, the one with the guy who just wants time to read and then the apocalypse happens?" He's referring to the 1959 episode, Time Enough at Last, about farsighted man who loves his books but is prevented from reading them by the people around him. He shuts himself away in a bank vault so he can focus undisturbed and emerges to find the world wiped clean of society. In the end he's left in a public library holding his shattered glasses, unable to read and with no one left to fix them for him. It's a greater, personal apocalypse. That's the theme that cuts through, individual relationships that degrade and tear themselves apart, friendships that fracture and move away from each other like continents. -Leia Weathington