Houndmouth
NewMusicforOldFolks says …
I saw Houndmouth open for the Drive-By Truckers a couple of years ago and two things immediately struck me. First, these guys were gonna be big, not Taylor Swift big, but big. They have that sound that's popular right now, rootsy, country Americana. Second was that my son, Max, would really like this. It was a little young for me, I thought, but I had to remember to tell Max about it. Then I really started to listen and decided that maybe I wasn't too old. The show was really good. Then they played "Penitentiary" and I was hooked. "Penitentiary" comes from the album From the Hills Above the City. It's excellent. I still occasionally think I'm fooling myself, but then I just try not to think about it and listen; That feeling goes away. Either I get younger or the band gets older.
Artist's Info
Website: houndmouth.com
See him live: Tour dates
Record company: Rough Trade Records
Genre: Roots, Americana
If you like this, look into: Drive-By Truckers, Jason Isbell, Alejandro Escovedo
Bio (From AllMusic.com)
Boasting a sound that's informed by vintage country rock and the melodic side of indie rock, Houndmouth was formed in 2011 in New Albany, IN, a town across the river from Louisville, KY. Founding members included guitarist/vocalist Matt Myers, keyboardist/vocalist Katie Toupin, bassist/vocalist Zak Appleby, and drummer/vocalist Shane Cody. The driven group of musicians quickly built a loyal following based on its fervent live shows, and was soon sharing stages with like-minded bands such as Drive-By Truckers and the Lumineers. In 2012, the group issued a self-titled four-song EP, and in 2013, Rough Trade Records released the band's full-length debut, From the Hills Below the City, a hearty collection of ragged country-informed rock & roll. Houndmouth returned in the spring of 2015 with Little Neon Limelight, another set of lean country boogie and late night laments.
Spotify sampler
Recordings
Most Recent
LITTLE NEON LIMELIGHT (2015): “An album is, or ought to be, a complete picture. It should come in waves, changing its focal point when things get too predictable or settled.” With this statement to Ann Powers that accompanied NPR’s premiere of Houndmouth’s surreal, Dylanesque ballad “For No One,” singer/guitarist Matt Myers — perhaps inadvertently —issued a mission statement for the band’s second album. Little Neon Limelight finds the four-piece stretching out in every direction. Working with producer Dave Cobb in Nashville, they were able to bring the kind of size and warmth that does justice to this batch of songs, worked out over 18 months on the road, and resonant with joy, hurt, loneliness, glory: all of human ache and loveliness. Little Neon Limelight finds Houndmouth further differentiating themselves from the airtight song structures and shouty singalongs of the current “Americana” scene, treading into territory occupied by not only their Southern rock forebears, but with an attention to songwriting and vocal performance recalling at times The Band, Ryan Adams, Gillian Welch, the Beatles, and the Kinks.
OTHERS
From the Hills Below the City (2013)
