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For the first time since 2018, Australian rockers HANDS LIKE HOUSES finally return with a brand new double album. Ushering in the start of a new era for the band, Atmospherics isn’t all that is new in the band. They’re also returning with new frontman; Josh Raven (THE FAIM) who brings a whole new dynamic to the band. As always, the double LP is always a tricky play for bands. In some cases, you get high quality double albums such as Blonde On Blonde by BOB DYLAN and then on the other hand, you get Stadium Arcadium by THE RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS. Atmospherics lies somewhere in between, there are moments of greatness that are unfortunately bogged down by tracks that don’t quite hit the mark.
Split into four parts, the album starts with Tropo, a section of the album which sees a guest singer on all but four tunes. Heaven kicks everything off with a bang. The blend of electronic and hard rock is a fun mix and gives off a feeling not too dissimilar from BEARTOOTH, the grandiose sound and wonderful vocal prowess of Raven really drive this song which starts off Atmospherics with a lot of promise. Better Before kickstarts the plethora of guests who feature throughout the album. UNDEROATH’s Aaron Gillespie offers up clean vocal skills to go up against Raven’s slightly harsher vocals which compliment each other perfectly. The music itself is like a freight train that once it gets going, there’s very little you can do to make it stop.
Bloodrush is one of the more interesting tracks on this record, combining a hip-hop sound throughout its verses before reverting back to the heavier sound as Aussie compatriot Emmy Mack of REDHOOK lends her vocals offers some more variety on the record. Paradise closes out the first part of the record as one of the heaviest tracks so far, it really packs a punch and welcomes another Australian into the fray with THE GETAWAY PLAN’s Matthew Wright who gives the song shot of urgency which brings Tropo to a close.
Strato starts to see a slight drop off in quality. Starting off its second chapter with 24 Hours, you’d be forgiven for thinking this song could have been any of the songs on the previous chapter, showing that this album would maybe have benefitted with having some of the fat trimmed. Hollow quickly follows and opts for a synth based style of track instead of the enormous rock sound that has been prevalent throughout. It slows the album down slightly for a much needed break among the chaos for a stadium sized and soft spoken heartbreak song, bringing in a bit of much needed diversity. The penultimate track of Strato, Panic gives the album some much needed intensity as it serves as a more poppier sounding metalcore song with grinding guitar riffs that leave you feeling battered and bruised. It’s a song that surely will be excellent live. Wildfire closes out this section and unfortunately puts a halt to any development the previous track did by becoming a song that could easily blend in with what came before it.
Meso starts to see the decline of Atmospherics in terms of quality. Once again made up of four songs but unfortunately sees only two of them truly standing out. Hurts Like Hell and Obey are two great tracks that once again feature guests such as Swedish hardcore band NORMANDIE and SLEEPING WITH SIRENS frontman Kellin Quinn. Both songs go hand in hand as they work off one another in a great way. Changing up the sound slightly, the guitar has a great bounce to it that makes it almost impossible to keep still whilst listening to them. They see HANDS LIKE HOUSES, NORMANDIE and Quinn at the top of their game as they create some great moments together that make you lament why the rest of the album couldn’t be this way.
Thermo sees the final chapter of the album come about, opening up on the earnest and soft track Fatally Fractured. This once again proves that Atmospherics should have been a single album as it sees HANDS LIKE HOUSES exposing their more vulnerable side in what is a wonderfully atmospheric track that combines quiet reflective moments with huge stadium sized choruses. The frustrations continue as the album comes to its close, ICU and Parasite are decent tracks, but just sound too similar, that the album would truly have benefited by featuring one or the other instead of both of them. The End brings about the end of Atmospherics which feels like it should be a giant grandiose moment that celebrates the journey of the record before arriving at its destination but unfortunately lacks that one final punch that it needs for you to feel something by the time it finishes.
Atmospherics is a hugely frustrating listen. Just as you feel like it’s taking one step forward it takes two steps backwards. There are moments of greatness that feature throughout and that’s what adds to the disappointment, if this had been a single LP then the quality would be much higher, but unfortunately there are too many ideas in this that give it a middling feel, but the attempt at trying them can be commended. Overall, it’s a prime example of less being more, for an album that starts off with such a bang, it ends on quite the whimper.
Rating: 6/10
Atmospherics is out now via Civilians.
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The post ALBUM REVIEW: Atmospherics – Hands Like Houses appeared first on Distorted Sound Magazine.
