An incredible Q-bert like dance party.
David Joyner | Fayetteville, NC USA | 10/07/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"When I first put in my Desperate Living CD, I honestly didn't know what to expect. I had heard that the band was trying to distance themselves a bit from their metal influences, and honestly it made me nervous. I first discovered HtB AS a metal band, and wasn't ready to part with that yet. Little did I know, HtB had grown on me with their own unique style and sound, and metal wasn't even a part of the equation anymore.
Sure, there's still screaming, there's still some double bass, and there's still some rough, raw guitar with heavy distortion; but the pacing, the smooth transitions, and expert keyboard playing take it almost out of the rock genre altogether. It's really something to experience. Also, lead singer Nathan Winneke actually places melody in several of their songs (something that was experimented with in A Natural Death) and creates a powerful feel without a wide vocal range.
Some tracks are still head-noddingly awesome, while others sometimes are slower, and fill your head with random images (which does seem almost like what they wanted to happen). Now, when I say slower, I don't mean slow. Anyone who is familiar with HtB's music knows that they are more fast paced than a cheetah on speed, so they'll understand.
Desperate Living is way more than I ever expected it to be. It's well paced, well versed, beautiful (in their own way) and still sloppy (once again, in their own way). Horse the Band's sound has really come out, and it only took them 5 CDs to do it.
Also, if you like videogames, they reference them a lot. Good stuff."
The Best HORSE the Band Release to Date
Kit Kitsch | 10/06/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"There really isn't a band out there quite like this one. That being said it definitely took my awhile to get into their first few albums. And they were great but I really do think their Vagrant Records debut, Desperate Living, is the best album they've put out so far. And they don't do it by changing their sound. They've stayed true to their own style and only expanded on it.
One little setback for me though. They still have their random noises thing going in some of their songs and it did annoy me just a little bit. I've gotten used to their style so normally it wouldn't be a problem. But, you'll notice that a good portion of these songs are a little darker and sadder than most of their other material. The randomness in those songs just takes me out of the tempo of the song a little bit and it's a little annoying but certainly nothing to be overly upset about.
I would say that most of the songs on the album are great and I don't have a particular favorite but The Failure of All Things, to me, summarizes the nature of album pretty well.
This album also has MUCH better production than their previous albums, which was to be expected. I'll also say that the drumming on this album is excellent and really melds well with the music. All in all, it just seems like all the noises you're going to hear are working together instead of fighting each other. It really shows how far they've come and even if you absolutely hate HORSE the Band, you should still check this out.
I guarantee, you won't find another album or another band quite like this one. It's unique, fresh and just a fantastic album."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1