Album Review: Houndmouth - From The Hills Below The City

This reviewer listened to Houndmouth's debut album, From The Hills Below The City, when suitably hungover and feeling sorry for himself on a wintery Sunday. And it's clear: it has the ability to remove a listener from their rut. It makes you want to instantly learn the lyrics off by heart, swig some scotch and proudly sing along to the impassioned folk-country rock songs, in all your out-of-key glory.

The young four-piece hail from New Albany, Indiana, and have managed to merge nostalgic influences of old-fashioned country and blues greats into something fairly new that (most of the time) still feels strikingly relevant. A lot of this is achieved with vocal duets by Matt Myers – whose voice shines throughout the album – and Katie Toupin, crisp drum production and meticulously created guitar tones. The opener On The Road, a charming love song, is a brilliant example of this. The song also has a glorious music video featuring the band performing in big head mode. Other stand-out tracks include Come on, Illinois and Penitentiary, with strong driving lead guitar parts, the whole band providing vocals to create some really proud sounding choruses. The highpoint of the album is Comin' Round Again, which includes a string section and Myers recounting a story of racing after a lost love. But there are elements that are recycled without being rejuvenated; noodling and unnecessary blues guitar licks and loads of talk about travelling between various US cities via train, coming home for the winter and coal mining towns. All of which have been heard too many times before. Despite these points, Houndmouth deliver their songs with so much gusto that you can't help listening to it again.