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'Welcome, All That's Difficult' has good hooks, complex arrangements
By Malcolm X Abram
Beacon Journal music writer
Published on Sunday, Oct 26, 2008
Akron quintet Houseguest has been playing around Northeast Ohio bars for nearly 10 years, honing its indie pop tunes and building up a healthy following.
On Welcome, All That's Difficult, its sophomore effort for Patrick Carney's (Black Keys) Akron-based Audio Eagle label, the band offers 14 new songs steeped in its tuneful twin-
guitar attack augmented with snatches of synths, organ and the occasional trumpet.
On its debut and earlier EPs, the snarky song titles suggested musicians with their collective tongues firmly implanted in their collective cheeks. But they are not simply a quirky pop band of smart-alecks, but a quirky pop band of smart-alecks who fill their mostly sub-four-minute songs with jittery toe-tapping grooves and hummable hooks embedded in songs whose inherent catchiness belies their fairly complex arrangements.
Peppy album opener Iron Oar sets the tone well with its start-stop beat, dramatic dynamic shifts and burbling guitar lines from guitarists Dave Whited and Dave Rich, while singer Ted Mallison bellows about the sea.
The disc's best songs are uptempo tunes such as Proud Utility Infielder, Medieval (Af)Faire and the '80s-flavored Difficulty Club, which are stuffed with guitar harmonies and contrapuntal riffs, pushed by the caffeinated drums and sprightly melodic bass provided by Steve Clement and Gabe Schray, respectively.
Tracks such as Little Brother Nautilus and the near-frantic Our Mess (Restructured) are solid slices of pop, while Heir of the Dog flirts with arena rock.
Houseguest has been around long enough to be taken for granted as just another dependably good indie rock band from Akron. But the songwriting on Welcome, All That's Difficult reveals that the band has grown from its Audio Eagle debut and apparently realizes that packing songs with good hooks, shifting but not cluttered arrangements and earworm-worthy melodies will get them farther than snarky song titles.
Malcolm X Abram can be reached at mabram@thebeaconjournal.com or 330-996-3758.
Akron quintet Houseguest has been playing around Northeast Ohio bars for nearly 10 years, honing its indie pop tunes and building up a healthy following.
Get the full article here.
Comments
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akron, oh
Posted 08:48 PM, 10/26/2008
And if Carney's parents didn't write for this paper they would get no ink at all. They are okay musicians at best. The REAL band from Akron is playing Tangiers on Nov 8th.
Easy Street rocks!!
