Customer Reviews

Cold House

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've often wondered what would happen if an artist released an album under a false name, what the critics and fans would think of something. This record- had it been a Radiohead record would have been hailed as brilliant, gorgeous and ground-breaking. Instead, it floats along without much fanfare in the alternative underground as an unheard masterpiece. Blips, beeps and cool moods of emotion are what carry this record down the path less traveled.

Not the fantastic 'Thunderbirds' villain, but a deceptively interesting pop group.
Hood are kinda like Pink Floyd circa 1967, when the zest for existence and a lust for experimentation hadn't dissolved into the lax tedium of cumbersome millstones like 'the Wall'. By contrast - Hood are STILL interesting.

'Cold House' is an album by Hood, and despite a somewhat doomy feel to the set, you can't help but feel they have essential humour to go with their not inconsiderable talent. Frolics to be had among the angst.
'Cold House' has the right mix of churning pop and staccato ballads. Some songs; 'the River Curls Around the Town' for example, are almost too experimental in a I'm-not-really-in-an-experimental-mood-today sense, but are not quite experimental enough a few days later.

Titles reflect the vital nature of the music. You've gotta be careful with things called 'They Removed All Trace That Anything Had Ever Happened Here' and 'I Can't Find My Brittle Youth' - songs with titles like these DARE not be poor and thankfully they aren't. They confidently succeed.

Hood have an intriguing knack of sounding like some-one else - only better. 'Trace' sounds like a vastly improved version of those rank woefuls Gallon Drunk, with a mournful violin nod to Microdisney's 'Pink Skinned Man'.
When you close your eyes, sometimes music can be a real eye-opener....

Hood's influences are manifold. The only influences anybody needs in modern music is Cabaret Voltaire and Dollar - coincidentally two of Hood's influences.

Some of Hood's songs, like 'Branches Bare' are just plain scary; some of their lyrics are dryly obscure, waiting for pseudo-intellectuals to pick their way through them, but they all have that special-music-something. That which can move you away from the mediocrity and the middlin' and energetically renew your sense of wonder.

When I was a wee bairn, there was a phrase abounding in critical circles: "bringing back something new".
A phrase that could have been specifically coined for Hood.

HOOD has done it again, 'cold' is the next episode
after 'home is where it hurts'. ten tracks that will
help us through the dark novemberdays. Titles poetic
as ever, clever samples and moodish , go with this flow
of melancholia. With the cycle of days and seasons an essential
record!

I found this album, taking a listen because I had never heard of a band named Hood...
I'll say that this record does require your time to really get to know it. Patience and repeated listens, not something uncommon in the indie/post rock territory. Some say it's on par with Kid A, and being a Radiohead fan I can agree - slightly. Cold House feels to me to be more organic, but 'colder' (forgive my pun) than Kid A. Kid A has the production of Nigel Godrich, while Cold House does not. This shows through in track organization and overall feel. But don't get me wrong. I'm a fan of this record.
In terms of sounds, the glitch sounds are more prominent, and some have just the right attack and pitch to make my skin crawl. There are more beats, many of the tracks have a trippy-dance feel to them. I think you could dance to them if you wanted to (not recommended with Kid A)...there is more flow, more singing. Overall it seems to me like Hood is comfortable being different, as if the band existed in this vein of music their whole career (which I cannot verify since I haven't heard any earlier recordings, just this and Outside Closer) while Kid A set out to be that way.
In conclusion, undeniable are the similarities to Kid A, and this is entirely reasonable because Cold House was released a year later.
Personally I find the opener and track 2 to be my favorites, with 2 as my number one. They have beautiful instrumentation and a heavy beat, as well as enough sensible(?) lyrics to keep your attention.

Give this unusual gem a try, and you'll see what I and these other reviewers mean.

I thought that hood had hit their peak of excellence with 1998's "rustic houses, forlorn valleys" but this exceeds even that mournful, intimate, gorgeous and groundbreaking album. this album is even more innovative, exploring ambient, slowcore, postpunk, and other select genres to create an extremely emotional, expressive, and melancholic work. samples, beats, electronic blips melded with more organic instruments seems to emphasize the album's theme of slogging through a cold world. lyrics like "do you ever lie awake at night and think about your life and all your friends who died..or do you even think at all?" (or something close to this) adds to the despondency. this is a perfect album for those who are both sensitive and intelligent, perfect for those who loathe both the britneys and the strokes of the world.

... This is a great album. So great that I'm sure someone will shred it in the months to come. The great ones always get slammed eventually. Don't be fooled, though. This is great music.

I bought this album because I had never heard of Hood and I do like cLOUDDEAD. I have to thank cLOUDDEAD once again for the exposure to this group.

Is it IDM? Is it post-rock? What is it? It's great. That's what it is. Hood have taken many components of styles and melted them into an incredible music experience. It works very well. On songs like "Lines Low To Frozen Ground" we get a bit of laid back jazzy sounds with an almost Cranberries vocal in the background. With "Branches Bare" (my favorite) you'll experience some of the grooviest post-rock I've heard yet.

The bottom line is that these guys will definately be up and coming with this release. The reason I say with this album is that they are still pretty obscure, yet they have released five albums to date.

Do yourself a favor and check this album out. Try cLOUDDEAD while your at it. They're hip-hop, but not like you'd think. These artists are doing some special work and deserve your time. Again, this is all my opinion, but I hope you enjoy this disc as much as I do.

As the other reviewers point out this is not a straight foward single genre album. It mixes styles akin to Radiohead's ''Kid A'', gloomy indie style vocals and experimental hip-hop.

I bought this on the same day i got B.R.M.C and Preston School of Industry and i listened to Hood after listening to those. It really took me back and made me listen in depth (whereas the others struggled to take a hold on the listener, not that they weren't anygood.)

Easily the best song on this album has to be track 3, while the most likely single is track 6. Tracks 1, 2, 4 and 10 also are very very good however tracks 5, 7 and 8 are an unstructured mess and would fit into KID A easily. This 'underground' band really are different and worth a listen.

Avoid if you like the simple easy to comprehend mainstream sounds of bands like the Stereophonics and Travis.

maybe once or twice it runs slow.. but then it fixes itself.
wonderfull release with sounds i have never experienced before.

Indie electro-pop walks between original and derivative but ultimately, despite a general consistency, remains disposable. Despite some labored production and experimental proddings, there just isn't much to hang yourself around in these tracks, indicating a band more inclined towards intricately arranged bells and whistles over substantive arranging.