Hands Like Houses released album A T M O S P H E R I C S on February 14 and it was a great Valentine’s Day present.
The album is the first with new frontman Josh Raven of The Faim.
His impact is immediately noticed as soon as opening track Heaven kicks in. His soaring vocals fit in well with the atmospheric instrumentation. I feel like I’m listening to a Talk Talk era The Faim track but also keeps the heavier edge of Hands Like Houses’ sound.
I love the idea of A T M O S P H E R I C S, which is split into four mini EPs but released as one package. Each mini section is named after a various ‘sphere’ and each one sees the band grow further into their new sound.
Heaven kicks off the TROPO section and Better Before kicks straight in with a funky bass line and drum beats and has a heavier instrumentation. Josh’s vocals blend really well with Aaron Gillespie (Underoath) who lends his talents to the track. The chorus of ‘I was better before I met you’ is catchy and gets quite angsty towards the end.
The STRATO layer is more emotional in its lyrics, particularly in Hollow and Panic and kicks up the heavier sections of instrumentation, particularly in Panic which works extremely well as it sounds like a panic. This layer does, however, have one of the weaker tracks in Wildfire as the vocals in the verse sound quite strained because of how high they are.
The MESO layer has two guest features – Normandie on Hurts Like Hell and Kellin Quinn on Obey. The former is extremely dancey and shows further variation in the album, particularly when it switches between the dancey vibe and heavy sections.
The final section is THERMO and it kicks off with single Fatally Fractured. The calming start really leads you into a relaxed state, and when it ‘kicks in’, it’s still very calming. It’s a nice song to listen to, with the drums and guitars doing the heavy lifting on the music front but allowing the vocals to shine through. This is countered by the heavier sound in the chorus of ICU, which I feel is structured in a genius way.
The lyrics are very relatable and well written, as Bloodrush kicks in with a perfect line of “I’m just another slave to the bloodrush.” This is definitely something most people have felt at points in their lives. The lyrics are delivered really well too, particularly with the dual vocals adding another layer. ‘I’m burning up from a fever but I can’t get you out of my veins’ is a really cool line from Hurts Like Hell, and of course they had to get in a heaven comparison with ‘it hurts like hell but it feels like heaven to touch.’
Hollow has the most beautifully heartbreaking lyrics and they are delivered stunningly over a calming synth-laden instrumentation and I think it’s my favourite song on the album.
ICU’s lyrics are genius, talking about seeing pain everywhere and voices being deafening.
Josh is definitely a perfect fit for Hands Like Houses. His vocals work well and he’s a charismatic frontman who will definitely bring these songs to life well live.
The album is varied with melodic, poppy elements and heavier sections with scream vocals. It is – pardon the pun – atmospheric.
It showcases the talents of guitarists Alexander Pearson and Matt Cooper, bassist Joel Tyrrell and drummer Matthew Parkitny because the switch between styles is just effortless on all of their parts.
If you haven’t checked out A T M O S P H E R I C S yet then I highly suggest you give it a listen as soon as possible and you may find that Hands Like Houses become one of your favourite bands.
