What if Peter Walsh was a Sad Indie Girl?

One of our early interactions with Peter Walsh’s consciousness in Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway comes after he leaves the titular Clarissa’s home. Following his tearful French exit, Peter walks the streets of London, haunted by the half-hour chime of St. Margaret’s clock tower.

Peter battles thoughts of aging, death, anxiety, and failure – all interrupted, when he spots a young, beautiful woman. She transforms into the woman of his dreams; a mirror of Clarissa and a symbol for a life of romantic frustration. Peter follows her as she walks away from Trafalgar Square, building up a fantasy relationship, inventing dialogue between the two, and pushing through crowds to keep up – a “romantic buccaneer.” The excitement of his quest builds and builds until she stops, unlocks the door to her home, and without ever looking at Peter, shuts herself away, ending his daydream. The rush subsides, and Peter continues on with his mundane schedule, unbothered.

To the modern reader, Peter’s short trip feels like the makings of a restraining order. But buried underneath is something universal, chasing the answer to a burning question: “What if…?” We go on many of those “adventures” everyday – consciously and unconsciously, imaginary and real – building up a sense of self while living as someone else.

Listening to a song you’ll never hear again trickle out of a store as you walk by. Giving a fake name to a barista, something you wish you were called instead. Finding a traffic buddy to fly down the highway alongside. Seeing someone with the same shoes as you on the street (they wear it better). Thinking the bartender is flirting with you. Missed connections, although fleeting, texturize life; affirming the current reality and pushing you onwards to the next.

Such is the case of Athens, Georgia-based act Hoyas. The band was short-lived, forming in January 2019 to perform a few house shows and concerts around the city, record and release a self-titled EP, and disband all before New Year’s. Their energetic sound reflects their name, taken from the bright and colorful genus of plants found in tropical Asia. Pulling together punk, shoegaze, and psychedelic influences, Hoyas delivers nonstop thrill through five tracks. Fuzzy guitar riffs, frantic drumming, and flurrying vocals expand, subvert, and dissect the same underlying motif. Each song feels at home in a mosh pit, on the Top 40, or at an overpriced coffee shop. The dream-like soundscape melts together the best of The Strokes and Cocteau Twins, with each intricate piece tied together beautifully with a runtime under 20 minutes.

A group of friends messing and jamming around, it’s easy to imagine how the conversation started (“What if we started a band?”). That 2019 run was their little adventure to find the answer. The only thing the audience can ask for is, well, more. But like Peter’s pursuit, this adventure ends with a closed door; the keys thrown away at a pair of farewell shows in December 2019. Although the moment is finished, remarkable art and lasting memories remain. Traces of the past there to remind you of the potential in the future, prepping for the next adventure. Just don’t be as sad and weird as Peter Walsh.