Customer Reviews

Happiness Ltd.

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

 

 

Happiness Ltd. is the Canadian indie rock band's fourth full length album and it really shows how they have grown as musicians. The album retains the familiar Hot Hot Heat sound but expands it in new and exciting directions. The music is epic, the lyrics are catchy and meaningful, and the album has an energy that ties all the tracks together.

The album opens with its most epic and pleasantly over-the-top song, the title track, "Happiness Ltd.". It is followed by mostly up-tempo songs interspersed with a few well-placed and well-crafted ballads. "Outta Heart" and "So So Cold" are the best of these. As the album title suggests, most of the tracks explore the theme of happiness: how fleeting it can be, how important other people are to our happiness, and how hard life is without it. It appears to be a very personal album for lead singer Steve Bays. There are moments where his delivery of lyrics is so surprisingly perfect that he captures the emotion of the song in just a few words.

All in all this a fantastic album, fun and energetic, and comes with my highest recommendation. Hot Hot Heat has solidified its position as an important rock band.

Best Songs: Let Me In, 5 Times Out Of 100, Give Up?
For Fans Of: The Killers, Panic! At The Disco, OK Go

Hot Hot Heat must have gotten a cold cold shoulder in the love department; "Happiness is limited, but misery has no end," is how this once effervescent band of post-new wavers glumly kick off their fourth album. Make no mistake, the giddy percolating pop that threw Elevator off the rails has been broadened to include some serious downers. In addition to the title bummer, there's "A Good Day to Die," which couches a true Cure-depressant lyric atop a peppy melody, and the closing "Waiting For Nothing," has lead singer Steve Bays watching his ex-girlfriend walk off into the sunset as he whimpers "I waited for nothing, but I waited for her."

This is Hot Hot Heat going through growing pains. A far darker album than any of their prior efforts, anyone looking for the manic pop thrill of "Running Out Of Time" or "Bandages" might be taken aback. But if you let the album sink in, their are rewards to be found. The title track is pure Morrissey/Robert Smith vibes, and is one of their best. "Harmonicas and Tambourines" is a good song about misplaced aspirations and vicarious living. For those craving that keyboard driven rock that brought the band into the spotlight, there are the great "Let Me In," "5 Times Out of 100" and "Give Up?," all radio worthy zingers. (With "Let Me In" eager to give The Killers a run for the money.)

While they have yet to achieve an album that establishes greatness (ala the aforementioned Las Vegas guys and Sam's Town), there are moments that suggest "Happiness Ltd" was aching to grasp it. If the fifth album maybe stays with one producer (Butch Walker seems to frame the band best on the CD, Rob Cavallo a close second), Hot Hot Heat may yet catch commercial fire. Recommended.

I tried with this album--oh, how I tried. I was one of those who declared "Elevator" an absolute masterpiece, and argued with people who tried to claim HHH were losing their edge and headed down a slippery slope to VH-1 land. Well, I STILL think "Elevator" was a brilliant album, but its detractors were right, too, apparently, because there is barely a trace of "edge" left on this mushy, bland collection of forgettable pop tunes. There's really only only one song worth repeated listenings, in my opinion, and that's the rousing, punchy "Five Times Out of a Hundred." After two years of production, filled with breathless announcements from the band that made it sound as though the second coming of "Sergeant Pepper's" was on the way, this dreck feels like a betrayal. Why, then, even give it two stars? Because it still features the magnificent Steve Bays on vocals. Whatever blame he shares for the lackluster songwriting, his tortured yelping is still balm for the soul.

"Happiness Ltd." is the smartest, best-crafted, and most mature disc yet from Hot Hot Heat, not that there was anything wrong with the fun, bouncy nature of their earlier works. The lyrics in particular on this offering suggest a deeply personal approach that absolutely pays off. Perhaps most amazing is HHH's ability to deliver several of their trademark jangly, toe-tapping tunes, despite the turn toward weightier lyrical themes. There are no obvious weak tracks on the disc, and "Let Me In," "My Best Fiend," and "5 Times out of 100" are completely irresistible.

OK, so i don't really remember what songs were on this cd, i purchased 3 hot hot heat cd's off here at the same time, but they were all good.

I don't think anyone saw this coming. The Canadian indie-punk rockers' third album proved to not only be their most mature, but also their most depressing. I was shocked to read the tracklist, expecting this to be a happy, upbeat album (hence the title) like most of their other work. But seeing song titles like "Good Day To Die" and "Waiting For Nothing" proved me wrong. Even the opening title track was a downer, with the lyrics "happiness is limited, but misery has no end." To be honest, I was quite disappointed with both of HHH's previous albums and when I heard about this one, I had absolutely no intention of buying it. I was even less enthused about it when my friend gave me his copy because he hated it. It took me a few listens but it really grew on me. As always, the keyboards and guitars sound great. Also, the use of percussion throughout the album is terrific, and Steve Bays manages to display his incredible talent for song writing without sounding arrogant. So if you've given up on Hot Hot Heat or you've never really payed any attention to them, you might want to check this album out. Don't let the bad reviews scare you, you'll most likely be delightfully surprised.

Note: This is not "emo" music. Have you ever heard of a breakup album? Can a band write a sad song thee days without being called "emo?" Come on.

HHH really comes out here. Now, the casual fan will not appreciate all of the tracks on this disc. There are a number of tracks that continue the trend established through the last several albums (particularly Elevator) - but HHH also ventures into a new land and does it perfectly.

While tunes like "Waiting for Nothing" do not maintain the style of songs like "Picking it Up", the distinct HHH sound is there, and the overall effect is superb.

They're getting further away from the new wave revival quiche that made them interesting in the first place, and distinguishable from other record company product like The Hives and The Vines. They can still write decent hooks, but this album attempts the same level of sophisticated production that Elevator did, and that doesn't always seem to fit the material. It comes across like they had a good idea for the hook, and fleshed it out with indie/pop-quiche, wall o'sound production, rather than focusing on songcraft. Sounds like an under-developed Strokes album.

This album has an identity crisis (oh emo is the trend, why dont we write emo lyrics too and make some ballads?!?!) no no no, if i wanted to get emotional and listen to some deep, effective, slow music id listen to Coldplay, Elliot Smith, or Bright Eyes, not HOT HOT HEAT.

I used to love LOVE this band, i hope this is not the point they end. The only good song in this album is "5 times out of 100" which is a remastered version of the song released in 2002 (in "Knock, knock, knock"). I hope they havent lost the charm. Please give us the old Hot Hot Heat back, with songs like "Picking it Up", "Running Out Of Time", "Dirty Mouth", "Goodnight Goodnight", "Oh God dammit", "No, not now", "Soldier In a Box" "Naked in the city"

As far as puns go, the title track on the new album from preternaturally happy organ poppers Hot Hot Heat isn't a very subtle one. Blasting along on the raw sugar surge of triumphant, synthy disco party tracks like their breakout hit "Bandages" seems to have gotten old. So HHH kick off this album by moping around in a bass-heavy, hazy stomp, crying, "It's over now, happiness is limited, but misery has no end." It's like a cuddlier version of those eternal grumps the Walkmen-which isn't necessarily a bad direction for HHH to go. Although as you might expect, the tempo, if not the mood, doesn't stay down for long: "Happiness Ltd." gives way to "Let Me In," a careening, soaring spit-take that fights against the uplift of its chiming bells and strings. The rest of the time, frontman Steve Bays proves he still has a unique way of wringing the syllables of a phrase for all they're worth, weaving around each word like he's circling in for the kill. It's still a blast to listen to Hot Hot Heat when they sound like they're having fun, even if they have to fake it.