Adam Hopper

His music is so likeable and positive that you can’t help but smile” - Clunk

“I encourage you to submit yourself to this beautiful, and rare, kind of blessing.” Hive Magazine

“Concentrating on poignant, wry lyricism and catchy melodies, [Hopper] creates his own unique brand of wide-eyed, mellow alternative pop music.” Backseat Mafia

“a gorgeous, wholesome, welcoming invitation.” Hard of Hearing

Basking in the solace of countryside rambles, romantic getaways and escapist video game fantasies, Manchester singer/songwriter Adam Hopper soothes weary minds with the nurturing indie-pop balladry of ’Free To Roam’.

Produced by Rob Kirwan (Hozier, U2, PJ Harvey), ‘Free To Roam’ offers Hopper’s most serene outing to date. As if pulled straight from the Submarine soundtrack, the music wanders in the wistful airs of uncertain young adulthood - acoustic guitars playing against the heartstrings, melodies bursting up into the big blue skies and burning up in the scorching summer heat. Accompanying the release comes an appropriately halcyon 16mm music video directed by Catherine Jablonski, and features Hopper musing by the hills and streams of Hardcastle Crags, near Hebden Bridge. It’s available to watch here.

Discussing the sentiments between this all this bittersweetness, Adam Hopper explains: “When I’m feeling like hot garbage, I find that walking in the hills with a loved one can be one of the best salves. Free To Roam was half a song for a long time, I had the verses but was struggling for a chorus. Around the same time, I had written a silly song about my love of Sonic the Hedgehog with the chorus “blue, beautiful blue”. I shoehorned it in and by God it worked.”

Formerly of now-defunct post-punk outfit Blanketman, Hopper’s solo outings look inward, revealing his flair for sensitive, poignant and melodic songwriting. As someone who spends most of his free time gardening, looking after his cat Pippa and reading fantasy/sci-fi novels, Hopper’s music finds fantasy in the everyday and bountiful joy in the seemingly benign. 

In his still brief tenure, Hopper has already secured support slots for the likes of The Lounge Society, Langkammer and Saul Adamczewski (Fat White Family), and placement on Glastonbury’s Emerging Talent Competition Longlist. Featuring at this year’s The Great Escape, Adam has also received backing from the likes of Rough Trade Counter Culture, Clunk, Hive Magazine, Mix It All Up, Fresh on the Net, Post-Brexit Pop, Hard of Hearing, Backseat Mafia and The Revue

Happy release day! I’m really pleased to share Free To Roam with you today. Its a bit of a change from the last two mainly in that its a slower more stripped back number, I hope you like it. The main vocal and the acoustic guitar were recorded live in one take and then a few overdubs were added - Organ, Roland Juno and a bit of tambourine. It was engineered and produced again by Rob Kirwan and the artwork was made by Joe O’Rourke. Funnily enough the song was originally inspired by another artwork of Joe’s - I can’t remember if it was titled Free To Roam - but it was a monkey walking in profile with the words written around it. It’s still his Instagram profile picture! The song itself was written a couple of years ago. It’s probably a lockdown song. Any songwriter who says that they didn’t write a lockdown song in some way is lying, I promise you.

The song is a Frankenstein’s monster and it is very much alive. The song only started with the first verse and I was struggling for ages with a chorus. I took the chorus from a jolly little ditty that I wrote about everyone’s favourite blue speedster Sonic the Hedgehog. The melody just worked nicely. Once I added the little chorus refrain “I hate it when the thoughts inside your mind, reflect the colour of my eyes”, the lyrics made sense. Thematically, who is more Free To Roam than Sonic? Just try to stop him. I dare you. I had created a monster. Anyway, here’s a link to the two original tape demos, the chorus-less original and of course “Sonic the Hedgehog (Is a big role model to me)”.

I really love the music video for the song. Recorded on a miserable but lovely (I’m a rainy day man) day around Hebden Bridge and Hardcastle Crags with very talented filmmaker Catherine Jablonski. Recorded on 16mm film on a 90 year old Bolex camera. It’s just me mucking about in the countryside which is the essence of the song really. The only thing that is missing is Meg who is the one who usually convinces me to go out into the countryside in the first place when I am adamant that it is the last thing that I want to do until I get there and it is exactly what I needed. Please give it a watch and let me know what you think.

Finally, I’d like to say thanks to everyone who has pushed me to release this song and given me words of encouragement. If you’d all be so kind as to share the song on your socials and spread the word that would be great (only if you like it obvs). Any likes and comments you can give on my release post too goes a long way towards defeating the Insta algorithm and making sure my followers actually see it… (hate doing that bit). Thanks a bunch and I hope you enjoy the song!

When I’m feeling like hot garbage, I find that walking in the hills with a loved one can be one of the best salves. Free To Roam was half a song for a long time, I had the verses but was struggling for a chorus. Around the same time, I had written a silly song about my love of Sonic the Hedgehog with the chorus “blue, beautiful blue”. I shoehorned it in and by God it worked.