Artist:  House of Heroes

Album:  Say No More

Gotee Records
12 tracks, 52 Minutes

I started listening to House of Heroes shortly after the release of their Gotee Records S/T debut.  After seeing them at Cornerstone, I was officially a fan.  The Self-Titled album was met with some acclamation, but it was also met with some confusion.  This is a re-release of that album, with two extra songs. 

 

*If you already heard this album, skip to the stars at the bottom.

 

From the beginning, comparisons could be drawn to well-known pop and alternative rock acts of the past, but limiting their sound to a few influences is unfair to all of the innovative and challenging moments that are interspersed on “Say No More”.  The first few songs on the album do seem fairly straightforward.  Tracks like “Buckets for Bullet Wounds”, “Friday Nights”, and “Hey Mercedes” are easily enjoyable, and after just one listen, one will no doubt be singing along.  They have “oohs” and “ahhs”, bouncy beats, and melodies that get stuck in the head, but the song structures are inventive, the vocals are stretching, the lyrics are deep, and every song offers some standout moments.

 

Tim Skipper’s vocals break to envious heights on “Serial Sleepers” as he screams the meaningful words “save our souls from all of our dreams come true”.  The song is short and sweet with an awakening climax. “Make a Face Like You Mean It” has a completely unnecessary (but really cool) riff that leads to one of the standout choruses on the record.  “Metaphor in Parenthesis” sounds like a throwback to the classic rock days.  “Pulling Back the Skin” ends on an interesting dual vocal piece.  “Suicide Baby” begins with an off-timing segment and bassist Babcock whittles away on a divergent second verse.  The lyrics are also worth noting.  Drummer Colin Rigsby pens most of the bands thoughts, and the ideas expressed throughout are challenging, intelligent, and well written.  All of these subtle factors produce positive moments throughout the album make it well worth repeated listens. 

 

**This re-release comes packaged with two brand new songs that were not included on the Self Titled release.  The new songs surprisingly fit well with the rest of the album.  Sometimes an album that one has gotten used to just sounds wrong with tracks out of order or with other songs interspersed, but the new songs seem to meld well into the song selection.  The new songs are not the strongest tracks musically, but they are nevertheless very good songs that only add to the depth of “Say No More”.  Invisible Hook (track 4 overall), delves into the subject of apathy, and could be taken as a challenge to America, the church, or both with lines like “We could have changed the world five times if only we could open our eyes”.  The other, “You Are the Judas of the Cheerleading Squad” is more nebulous lyrically, but the song is on par and in line with the other songs on "Say No More". 

 

Considering the first pressing of this album made my top 10 for the year, it stands to reason that I’d like this re-release too. A pop-rock gem that just got better.