Vicious Pastimes

 

House of Harm

Vicious Pastimes

(Avant! Records)

 

This write-up is late.  Vicious Pastimes, the debut LP from Boston trio House of Harm was released back in early September.  Unfortunately, as mentioned in my previous post (Lonely is an Eyesore), I have not been listening to much music recently.  However, this fine album has been the main attraction, as it has been essentially the only album I’ve listened to over the past month or so.  The energetic and urgent romanticism of these songs is so life affirming and exciting that it is incredibly addictive and has been important in keeping me going during the depths of this pandemic.

 There is something undeniably retro about this album, yet because of the group’s incredibly strong songwriting it is not a hindrance.  The main thing that makes it feel retro to me is the super 80s sound of the drum machine.  It’s funny, because the drum sounds on songs recorded during the 80s are often what makes them sound dated and not as timeless as they should be, but here on this modern recording it doesn’t bother me and just makes me want to get up and dance.  It doesn’t hurt that every song on this record could (or should be) a single.  The kind that would’ve (or should’ve) been club hits back in the 80s.

Vicious Pastimes opens with the insanely catchy “Isolator,” which sets the stage for what is about to come.  The Peter Hook-ish bass-line propels this mid-tempo song, while the bright keyboards sparkle and chime leading me to play my first air keyboards in years!  Listening brings to mind visions of a dark smoky club – the stage back lit, so that all we can see are silhouettes of the band on stage and the tops of the bouncing/dancing oblique hair-styled heads of the audience.  I can smell cloves.  And is that a saxophone at the end?  “Coming of Age” is even more of all of this.  Michael Rocheford’s pleading vocals match perfectly to the spacious keyboard washes of each verse as the build into the fantastic sing along chorus.  The title track is similarly incredible with its driving beat, huge chorus, and persistent passion. 

The repetitive circular guitar rhythm sets up “Behind You,” which takes the intensity up a notch, driving the ear worm ever deeper into your psyche.  The urgency ramps up after “The Sun Always Shines on TV” (A-Ha) – like keyboard wash that breaks in like a majestic sunrise, before racing to its conclusion.  “Against the Night” is likely the most postpunk style song on the album.  The song sounds angrier with its howling guitar screams and off-kilter noise and a propulsive drum beat that stutters to an uncertain finish.  Another of the darker toned songs is the excellent “Waste of Time,” which is still insanely catchy with its broken bassline and a killer instrumental chorus with absolutely lovely layered guitars.

House of Harm "Catch"

The first song I ever heard from these guys was 2019s single “Catch.”  This windswept single lands in the middle of the LP like a breath of fresh air.  It is so spacious and sinfully catchy it’s really a shame that I haven’t grown sick of hearing it all over the damn place, as it deserves to be.  This is the kind of pop perfection that the Cure used to capture with singles like “In-Between Days” and “Just like Heaven.”  The only mistake the band made for their outdoor, near the water, video, is that they weren’t perched atop a giant cliff overlooking the churning ocean.  Speaking of incredible singles, “Always” has that big sound that begs to have movies written in order to incorporate its heart-wrenching romance.  

House Of Harm "Always"

The album closes, but does not let up, with the keyboard heavy “Control.”  The song energizes like a second wind.  Just when you were getting tired from so much dancing around (I sure miss live music), this one brings you back around and leaves you wanting more.  If I haven’t made it clear, this is one spectacular album that should be a blockbuster worldwide.

 

(https://houseofharm.bandcamp.com/)