The Proper Ornaments

The Proper Ornaments, an indie pop outfit based in London, originated from the close bond between James Hoare and Max Oscarnold. Their affinity for classic psychedelia and West Coast folk-rock prompted them to develop a homemade take on those styles, beginning with several singles issued in the early 2010s. Although each musician remained active in separate projects, their shared rapport produced a sequence of understated, quietly melancholic albums as the decade advanced. The initial approach was spare and jangly on the 2014 release Wooden Head, while later efforts such as 2019’s 6 Lenins incorporated denser arrangements and a subdued sensibility once the partnership had matured.

Their association began in 2005 when Hoare, then playing guitar in Veronica Falls, encountered Argentina-born Claps inside a women’s clothing boutique. The pair connected through a shared admiration for the Velvet Underground, Love, the Left Banke, and the Beach Boys. Their music also absorbed traits of classic U.K. indie pop, emphasizing gently ringing guitars. Limited by Hoare’s commitments, they rehearsed and performed intermittently before expanding to a full lineup that included drummer Ralph Phillips, bassist Michael Lovett, and Wesley Patrick Gonzalez of Let’s Wrestle. The first single, “Recalling,” appeared in 2010 on the San Francisco imprint Make a Mess. A self-titled five-track EP followed in 2011 via No Pain in Pop, and the 2013 single “Waiting for the Summer” came out on Lo Recordings, which collected all prior material on an album of the same name later that year. After securing deals with Fortuna POP! in the U.K. and Slumberland in the U.S., the Proper Ornaments issued their home-recorded debut, Wooden Head, in early summer 2014. For live dates the duo enlisted drummer Robert Syme (also known as Bobby Syme or Bobby Voltaire) and bassist Daniel Nellis.

Following the album, Hoare and Claps—now using the name Max Oscarnold—pursued separate endeavors. Oscarnold joined the Brighton psych-pop band TOY on keyboards, while Hoare collaborated with Mazes’ Jack Cooper in Ultimate Painting. When the two reconvened in 2015 to begin the second Proper Ornaments LP, Nellis and Syme participated in the sessions. The process encountered setbacks when the tape machine malfunctioned and erased their recordings, and tensions strained their relationship. After a period apart, the group returned to Hoare’s home studio and recut the material in a calmer setting. The resulting album, Foxhole, was issued jointly by Tough Love and Slumberland in early 2017. The band spent the remainder of the year on tour, then regrouped at Hoare’s studio, now fitted with a 16-track tape machine. Joined again by Nellis and Syme, they tracked the third album under more tranquil conditions. Released by the German label Tapete Records in early 2019, 6 Lenins captured this composed atmosphere in both its songwriting and sonics.

While touring Europe after the album’s release, the group—now featuring Nathalie Bruno on bass in place of Nellis—developed fresh ideas during soundchecks. Once home, the quartet resumed work at Hoare’s studio, employing vintage synthesizers and drum machines with heightened restraint to arrive at a mid-fi aesthetic that echoed their earliest recordings yet demonstrated the continued development of Hoare and Oscarnold as songwriters. Mission Bells appeared on Tapete in February 2020.