ALBUM REVIEW: Vicious Pastimes by House of Harm

Sep 18, 2020Sep 18, 2020 AnnaMarie Otor 0 Comments

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WRITTEN BY: Vince Barreras

The debut full length, Vicious Pastimes, from Boston post punk and new wave band House of Harm has dropped and the band is looking to make a statement. The sound of this record will remind people of past new wave/post punk bands that combine electronic elements and romantic lyrics over top twinkly and sometimes dark instrumentation. One cant look at the album cover and not make the distinction to The Cures Pornography record, which for many Cure fans, is their favoirte. Vicious Pastimes is a beautifully crafted album that will encapsulate fans from beginning to end.

Before the release of Vicious Pastimes, House of Harm were releasing loose singles here and there, and some demo tapes. This is the first time they have been able to release a full length project. The band is able to put out their vision in one full length piece, that songs fresh, cohesive, but not afraid to show its influences. Like previously mentioned there are darker songs on this record that will show the Pornography influence like “Against the Night,” “Waste of Time,” and “Victious Pastimes” The dark synths, and vocal tone are reiminscent of that album, but never fall into a copycat version of it. That’s where House of Harm shine, their distinct influence and originality is truly remarkable.

The opening track “Isolator” begins with a heavy EBM influenced synth but morphs into something lighter, and the following track, “Coming of Age” really lightens up the atmosphere with a nice light and twinkly synth. “Behind You” uses more guitar tone that’s reminiscent of something the UK and Australian bands The Chameleons and Death Bells mess with. It’s a nice dark sounding track that’s not afraid to build off of pre-existing sounds but made original for House of Harm. While the band does incorporate darkwave elements, the song “Catch” is much brighter, in fact a lot brighter than those darker tunes. The upbeat drums, and synth help compliment the vocal tone of the song and make a really beautiful and romantic track. “Always” builds off the sound of “Catch” and again features really charming and upbeat musicianship to get a track completed. The final track, “Control” finds a nice middle grow of tone. Its somber, its pleasant, and features a mid 80s post punk influence like some of the bands previously mentioned in this write up. It’s a great way to conclude an otherwise perfect record.

House of Harm did not disappoint with this record. It contains all the elements fans of synth, electronic, post punk and goth fans love in this genre of music. Its dark, at times light hearted, and stand on its own in terms of originality and comprised of all perfect tracks. This could be a nice introduction to any newcomer of the genre. It’s real easy to pick up and vibe too. Give it a spin, House of Harm are one of the best bands in the goth scene doing it right now.

For Fans of: The Chameleons, The Cure, Death Bells

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