Customer Reviews

The End Is Not the End

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After an agonizing wait from their last release, band House of Heroes brings us the next adventure entitled The End Is Not the End. It's been three years since fans have heard from these guys, but the result is an arrangement of songs ready to hold steady for another three.

The music is catchy and broad; it ranges from guitar hooks and big drum beats to acoustic rhythms and ska/punk throwbacks. While most of the album is straightforward rock, the band manages to bring in assortment of sounds and tricks incorporated within. While focusing on their musical talents, the End, has underlining themes of war and redemption. Each song seems to have it's own story to tell.

Tracks "If", "Lose Control", "Code Name: Raven", and "The Young and the Brutal" rock in the band's signature sound. The one slower ballad "By Your Side" takes a break from rocking hits and transforms into a story of brotherly love and commitment. Yet, the heavy beats like "Baby's a Red", "Journey Into Space, Part 1", and "Sooner or Later" will have you singing along and tapping your foot. Spiritual tones are somewhat hidden within most tracks, but the ones that are evident deal with feelings of redemption, loneliness, and grace. Musical comparisons come in waves in the likes of Green Day, Weezer, Relient K, or Fallout Boy.

Even though the wait was long, it's been worth it. I really enjoyed this release and fans of the band will be overjoyed; yet those just looking for a great upbeat album to rock to---this is the one. House of Heroes has brought along a collection of music worthy of heroes, some who fought bravely and others who long to capture our heart. I just hope that it doesn't take another three years for these guys to complete another release.

First of all this album rocks! I listened to House of Heroes self titled and wrote it off as okay, but serious potential. I bought this album through amazon mp3 thinking that it was just another Christian album. One listen to the whole 57 minute album is all it takes to be hooked. It's everything about it: the guitar riffs, the upbeat drums, the extemely harmonizing vocals (in which all 4 of the band members have amazing voices), the topics the cover, the concept of war, there is just too many good things to say about it. Each song plays fine by itself (in particular: Valley) but they just go so well with each other. There is not one song on this album which I can say I even thought about disliking. The sole 2 "ballads" are extremely well played. "By Your Side" is definitely a tear jerker, and "Field of Daggers" has a nice edge to it. Favorite songs: "Valley of the Dying Sun", "Code Name:Raven", and "Dangerous".House of Heroes is setting a very high standard for the music industry, both Christian and Mainstream. You can read all the 5 star reviews you like, but the only way you'll know how awesome this album truly is, is to buy it.

Update: I stumbled on Amazon's promotion of The End Is Not The End for $4 and just want to reiterate how timeless this album is. After two years I consistently find myself wanting to listen to this album and have whatever friends that I drive around hooked.

...Because it looks like you've got some major competition for Epic Rock Album of the Decade! Who would've thought that House of Heroes, a very good yet very under-the-radar band would churn out this little masterpiece? Anyway, the concept of the album is World War II and the band does not only an excellent job combining an older theme with modern music, but even more impressively, they manage to weave in themes of their shared Christian faith without sounding like so much of the crud that passes for "Christian music" (see: my personal favorite "In the Valley of the Dying Sun", a track that could either be about war or the story of Jacob wrestling the angel in the book of Genesis that brings to mind "Bohemian Rhapsody").
Anyway, enough about my rambling, just buy the album! Believe me, it's definitely worth the money :)

Well, it seems on this page there's a slight majority siding with me, and so likewise I believe there's not much more to say about this epic ecstasy of rock that they haven't mentioned already.

A couple of their songs hit a sour note here and there in terms of morality, but over these 16 songs are a phonological odyssey of love, remorse, grief, and hope with the blood and hardship of World War Two fluttering half-seen in the background. But it is no period piece. Make no mistakes; here is a universal outpouring of emotion that I once thought impossible to achieve by means of electric guitars and modern drums.

And of course musically nearly every song is brilliant catchy, and soars jsut as deep as the spellbinding lyrics. But don't take my word for it.

I've downloaded this album for 2 bucks on a whim. This has got to be one of the most inventive and flamboyant rock albums I've listened too - ever. Valley of the Dying Sun is an obvious standout, weird yet tasty. It's a good representation of the rest of the album. The rest of the songs have similar, if more subdued experimentation laced throughout. Think of a "Christian" version of American Idiot. Instrumentation is not earthshaking but well preformed and suitable. Vocals are clean, easy to understand and will probably get stuck in my head (sorry co-workers). If you have a chance to pick this up I'd recommend it, even at full price.

Why did it Rock my elbows off??? because i dont wear socks!

The songs are so clever that I almost always have some song from the album stuck in my head.

The first two songs "If" & "Lose Control" are just the start of a fantastic album. Everyone is calling this album "epic"..."the best rock album of 2008" and i couldn't agree more.

I thought "In the Valley of the Dying Sun" was a fantastic song, then i watched the music video and was even more impressed. House of Heroes makes huge strides with this album and expect to see this album on many of the end of the year top albums of 2008 lists

House of Heroes was not a band that I was familiar with prior to their sophomore release. All of the hype about them finally making a new album prompted me to check them out. And I am very glad I did. House of Heroes left their fans hanging for a whopping four years after their first release (with only two new songs on their re-release to fill the gap) and now, finally, they return with The End Is Not The End.


The End Is Not The End is an album with a little bit of a concept to it, since many of the songs have something to do with World War II. The opening instrumental track leads into the catchy love song "If." The song makes for a great opening track, and is immediately followed by the album's hardest rocking track, "Lose Control." "In The Valley Of The Dying Sun" is a pretty different song dealing with a man who thinks God is his enemy and ends up fighting him and realizing that He wasn't. Musically it is a very diverse song, skipping to various tempos, and allowing lead vocalist Tim Skipper to use his falsetto voice more. "Code Name: Raven" is another really catchy song, declaring, "I'd rather die than live without mercy and love." "By Your Side", the song that the album title is derived from, slows the album down for a bit, and actually sounds very nice, telling the story of a man going to war. The second half of the album shows HOH's punk side a little bit more than the first. "Journey Into Space, Pt. 1" and "Drown" have very similar sounding openings, but are still very good songs.

If you bought The End Is Not The End in CD form at one of HOH's shows before March 09, the album closes at "Field of Daggers," a very good closing song.

If you bought The End Is Not The End on iTunes, the last song is "The Young And The Brutal," a hidden track on the previous to March copy. It's a very fun and fast paced song, which fans of "Friday Night" from Say No More will appreciate.

The Acoustic End EP has the two acoustic tracks that took the place of "The Young And The Brutal" for the in-stores release in March. They are both very good songs, although some may find "Ghost" to be a sad and somewhat negative song, as it deals with the life of a man who "fell in with the wrong crowd." Not found on the CD release is the acoustic reworking of "If," which has a little bit of a quicker tempo.

So, in the end (which we know is not really the end), The End Is Not The End blew me away. It is an almost entirely flawless work, sure to make you tap your feet at one point or another, and slowing it down just at the right points. It's an almost perfect blend of songs, and there is not one that I would skip while listening to the album. This is why The End Is Not The End, is--in my opinion--one of the best albums to hit the Christian music market in a very long time.

This is by far one of my favorite CD's and now one of the most respected albums on my Ipod. The Recording is 100% solid. I hear and understand new things ever time I listen. It completely blows my mind every time I listen to this. Today I noticed little laser blasts on one of the songs which I never heard, and it made my day (1:47 if I remember correctly of "in the Valley of the dying sun"). They had harmonicas and everything.
Lyrics-Wise this is extremely healthy. Very deep Lyrics on every part of every song. I loved it, fun rock music with outstanding lyrics is my type of music. Awesome in every sense. Some lyrics were pretty hard to swallow, but it helps you figure your point of view and what would you do in a situation like that. It really makes you think.
The whole CD is themed to WW2, which they set a new record for.
No cons at all. Also get the "acoustic Ep" if you liked this, but of course you did; so you can just go ahead and buy it now. ;)

This album has changed my perspective on rock music in the 21st century.
It's not the Foo Fighters, Kings of Leon, or Radiohead that are defining rock... it is this band with this album.

The songs are thoughtful, complex, and crushing all at the same time. They know when to rock hard and when to slow it down. Vocal harmonies are aplenty and beautiful additions.

It's hard to write a review on a piece of art this good.


The sky is the limit for this band.


Buy and enjoy!

I had known about HOH from a local Christian station, but I didn't really keep up with their music. Just today I saw that Relient K on FB stated that HOH album was up for download for a huge discount. I previewed the album and it sounded pretty good. Now I have to say I am listening through it for the 4th or 5th time today. Now I am a fan.

I love songs that change up and do not sound the same through the whole song. This happens many times in this CD. No song seems to sound the same the whole way through. The lyrics are challenging, thought provoking, and spiritual. They are Christian, but they play like they love not only God, but music and poetic lyrics that touch on a variety of issues. This CD is a great deal no matter how much you pay for it. It is well worth it's listed price. I will eventually buy a hard copy of it so that I make sure not to lose it if my hard drive or it's back up crashes or is lost somehow.