ROCK
House of Heroes
Gotee Records
CBN.com –
Sometimes a severe setback can warrant the greatest evolutionary
leap for a band, and in House of Heroes’ case, an unannounced
series of roadblocks led to members’ most expressive and
ambitious musical direction to date. As teenagers in the then
titled band No Tagbacks, the trio was living the ideal artist’s
lifestyle -- making records, touring constantly, and building
up a grassroots fan base. But when label troubles set in, vehicles
started breaking down, and punkish pop no longer conveyed the
thoughts on members’ mind, a change was certainly in order.
“I look back at our early days and see these wide eyed
kids with dreams of being in a rock band just going for it,”
notes bassist A.J. Babcock, also the group’s primary lyricist.
“We were really naïve back then and I don’t think
we realized all that went into making this work, but getting out
there and trying it for ourselves only brought us closer together
and refined our vision of what we’ve become.”
After a serious degree of soul searching, an investigation of
other sonic opportunities and all out surrender of the situation
to their Maker, the gang reconvened as House of Heroes (a name
picked to avoid the childish contexts of its original incarnation)
and basically started from scratch. What first started as a new
batch of demos and then some road testing turned into the independent
album What You Want Is Now in 2003. The embrace of that
record by its faithful, plus the buzz circulating around the industry,
eventually led to the courtship of the Gotee Records family.
Despite the interest, there would be an eight month stalemate
due to previous record label red tape before HOH would officially
dot the Gotee line. For a band that was used to the pace of touring
and keeping tabs on their audience at all times, the wait was
truly tortuous, but it also carved out the free time needed to
wholeheartedly invest in the writing of its 2005 debut.
“On one hand we were angry and frustrated that we couldn’t
officially move forward and were tied up by some legal troubles,”
Babcock explains. “But we also knew having the time to spend
on the material would really help us come of age and write our
most progressive and well thought out effort to date.”
Whether fans of their one time adolescent institution or those
just jumping on board for the first time, the twelve track disc
is stacked with striking guitar riffs (“Fast Enough,”
“Buckets”) surging melodies (“Metaphor,”
“Friday Night”) and assaulting rhythms (“Serial
Sleepers,” “Suicide Baby”). The outpouring is
equally infectious as it is inventive, calling on a wide pool
of influences while carving out an adventurous niche of its own.
“Our base of what’s inspired the record is wide,
from the likes of Jimmy Eat World or Weezer as far as the beat
goes, to the more technical aspects of old school Rush or Muse
in more modern contexts,” Babcock believes. “We like
to think of it as a modern rock base with a slightly progressive
feel, especially in the case of the epic ‘Angels In Top
Hats.’”
Topically the album’s premises are just as expansive with
an open hearted account of doubt, frustration and confusion, coupled
with hope, healing and satisfaction. Unlike some acts that contrive
their ideas around the hot trends being talked about on MTV’s
TRL or bubble gum radio, every single reference on the record
spawns from the sources that sing them.
“Throughout the waiting and writing process, it caused
us to be really honest with ourselves and dig deep into the problems
faced along the way,” continues Babcock. “The result
is a back and fourth battle between darkness and light, sometimes
revolving around loneliness or turning away from the Truth, and
other times getting back on the right track. I suppose we could’ve
sugar coated everything to make it squeaky clean, especially since
honesty isn’t always pretty in all of its forms. We felt
like being that open with our social/spiritual commentary would
also be one of our biggest contributions to our audience.”
Such a commitment to quality on both ends stems from the threesome’s
immovable commitment to integrity, a trait sometimes discarded
in glow of fame or the attraction of making money. Clearly the
group could’ve easily sold out to a watered down recipe
of mass appeal or stuck with the safe subjects hoping to scan
more records, but sticking to its guns is sure to earn respect
in the long run.
“As Christians, we’re called to be creative people
and called to do something different from the rest of the world,”
deduces Babcock. “I think that’s generally overlooked
sometimes in Christian circles where a band comes out just to
be the cleaner version of a hit in the mainstream. There’s
definitely shining exceptions that go in new and creative directions
and that’s the category we’d like to be grouped in.
House of Heroes has a voice of its own and we’re committed
to our call of doing something different.”
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