Hawksley Workman invites us to a strange & beautiful world

Huntsville's alt-rock veteran Hawksley Workman has never been one to play it safe

Huntsville's alt-rock veteran Hawksley Workman has never been one to play it safe. With a career spanning over two decades and more than a dozen albums, he’s built a reputation for blending theatricality, poetic lyrics, and a restless creative spirit. Now, with his latest release Aliens on a Game Show, Workman once again defies convention—this time with an album that mixes synth-driven pop with reflections on modern isolation, longing, and the weirdness of everyday life.

The album’s title, Aliens on a Game Show, is as offbeat as its content. “The title track came from me imagining how strange humanity would look to someone who didn’t grow up in it,” Workman said in an interview with Roots Music Canada. “A game show is so performative—it’s all lights and winning and clapping—but underneath, there’s a kind of sadness, a kind of desperation.”

That contrast—between surface joy and deeper yearning—is a thread that runs through the entire record. Tracks like “Only the Rain” and “Freak on the Airwaves” pair upbeat synth hooks with lyrics about disconnection, memory, and trying to hold onto your sense of self in a noisy world.

Musically, the album sees Workman diving deeper into electronic textures than he has in years, a shift that he says came naturally. “I grew up loving synth-pop—Depeche Mode, Tears for Fears, even Thomas Dolby,” he told FYI Music News. “This album was me giving myself permission to go there without apology.”

Fans of his earlier, more folk-tinged albums might be surprised, but longtime listeners know to expect the unexpected. “He’s always evolving,” said CBC Radio 2 host Tom Power. “That’s what makes Hawksley such an essential Canadian artist—he’s never just one thing.”

Still, for all its digital shimmer, Aliens on a Game Show feels deeply human. Workman’s signature vocal style—emotive, theatrical, and intimate—grounds the record in vulnerability. “I want people to feel a little less alone,” he said. “Even if they feel like they don’t fit in, maybe they’ll hear a song and think, ‘Well, maybe I’m not the only one who feels like an alien.’”

The album is already resonating with fans and critics alike. Exclaim! called it “a bold, weird, and beautiful record that feels perfectly at home in Workman’s unpredictable discography,” while others have praised its emotional range and sonic experimentation.

As for what’s next? Workman shrugs. “I’m already working on something else,” he said with a smile. “But I don’t want to say too much. I like to keep it strange.”

Listen to the new song from Hawksley on The Countdown with Aaron Hall.

With quotes from:

• Roots Music Canada

• FYI Music News

• CBC Radio 2 interview with Tom Power, q

• Exclaim! album review