Artist: HummusVacuum
Album: The Art of a Fake Laugh
Release: May 22, 2026; Self Release
You may know HummusVacuum as the guy from that one viral TicTok music video apologizing for all the terrible people Ohio has produced over the years. While this maybe true to some extent, I somewhat disagree with the premise of the song. After all, Ohio has also given us some pretty cool people as well. John Glenn, Neil Armstrong, and my personal favorite honorary Ohioan, William Henry Harrison, reigning presidential speed run champion. Just to name a few. Disagreements aside, the song was a bop and now that band has released a new full length album. So let’s take a look at “The Art of a Fake Laugh” to see if it delivers more viral bops.
Hands down the best song on the album in my opinion is “Whoops! (I think I ruined my life)” . It’s a fun, self deprecating look at trying to survive in modern times. It’s full of catchy rifts and up beat vocals. It is also, thanks to a successful instagram marketing campaign, a fantastic call out song aimed at silver spoon fed nepobabies. They always seem to have opinions about how you should live your life, but no relevant life experience. The chorus is in fact perfect for that. I have endless love for this song. It is honestly another viral bop.
“Salt & Vinegar” is another great song. It commentates on the struggles of being politically active versus the desire of certain types of people to keep it ‘civil’. The song instead suggests that perhaps we don’t owe people who aren’t starting in a place of civility the benefit of civility in return. Again, this is set to some pretty dope riffs. Seriously, the guitar is amazing on this entire album but it is peak in this song. At about two and half minutes in, Kevin Cappy yells “Its time to take the low road” the songs transitions to a screamy emo bit and starts ripping guitar hard. Every time it hits I’m like—Damn, That’s good stuff.
“Lexapor Skater” and “Big Bummin’” take on mental health in a relatable way that leans on humor to keep things from getting a little too heavy. These two songs really show the strength of Kevin Cappy’s writing. Sure, its funny to think of skateboarding as analogy for the process of fine tuning your mental health meds but it also get you thinking about how normal it is to go through that process. A similar thing can be said for “Big Bummin’” struggling with anxiety and its effect on relationships is really a thing for a lot of people. I think if you struggle with that, this song reminds you others do as well and it does it set to sick emo vocals and power pop guitar riffs. A masterclass if you are asking me.
Last, is “G-U-I-L-L-O-T-I-N-E” I don’t really need to explain this song it is what it says it is on the tin. I absolutely love this song. It is a song that makes me feel that perhaps the “fake laugh’ isn’t pretending to laugh at an unfunny joke and is more lol maybe this is a threat or maybe its a joke. Who knows.
With “The Art of a Fake Laugh” HummusVacuum plays the part of the jester’ holding a mirror up to not only power but also the troubles of the common folk. This is what I love so much about the album. The songs often, on the surface, are silly little bits. Deep down, though, they’re a mix of inspiration, solid advice and searing truths.The album also looks at life in an incredible real way that makes you feel like you aren’t going through the hard times alone.