1. Developments
2. Introduced Species
3. Weight
4. Shapeshifters
5. The House You Built
6. A Tale Of Outer Suburbia
7. Oceandust
8. No Parallels
9. Fountainhead
10. Wisteria
11. A Fire On A Hill
Genre: Post Hardcore
For Fans Of: I, The Mighty, Palisades, Secrets
Honestly, when I saw that Hands Like Houses was recording another album, I was very skeptical because of how good their debut album was. I was wondering if they could ever actually amount to that? Could they do any better than what they already did? Could they better their name? Their reputation? And by my surprise, they did. “Unimagine” is an album that you could never possibly imagine (See what I did there?). “Unimagine” is one album I hope doesn’t die off in a few months. I hope this album lasts until their next release. There isn’t anything bad about this album, except that it ends. Hands Like Houses made a pretty good name for themselves with their debut album “Ground Dweller”. But they basically bettered their name with "Unimagine". I’m pretty sure they got a bit bigger because of this release, as well. Which in that case is another good thing for them. The lyrics on “Ground Dweller” are just as good as they are on “Unimagine”, but if I remember correctly, they said that they took time with this album. They picked some of their best, and worst experiences to write about, in order to create “Unimagine”. Hands Like Houses is one of the few bands that you could label “original” because they don’t try to sound like anyone. They basically do what they want, and they create some of the better music. They don’t feed on negative energy as well, which is one reason that I like them as much as I do. A few song that stand out on this album would have to be, “Developments”, “Introduced Species”, “Shapeshifters”, “The House You Built”, “Fountainhead”, and “A Fire On A Hill”. “Developments” was the song that started this album on the right foot, and it shows new fans (that may be listening) everything that Hands Like Houses has to offer for them. In my opinion, this did the album some good. The song didn’t make them look super good, or super bad, it was just right. It shows you everything about Hands Like Houses! For older fans, it shows how they’ve improved vocally, lyrically, and instrumentally. I like the fact that Hands Like Houses has a bar, and they try to go over the bar, but not too much, nor do they try to go under it. When they do go under, they pick themselves right back up. In “Introduced Spices”, “We don’t belong here” is the first line you hear in this song, and it just so happens to be the last line in the song too! I think this song is more about their “worse” experiences that they’ve had, but I could be wrong. The song is like “Developments”; they don’t go too far over their bar that they made. They go right above it perfectly, which may land them to reach number one on iTunes (I’m really hoping that this album lands them on that spot within the first week, because this album is definitely worth buying)! “Shapeshifters”, is one of my favorite songs on this album. It’s a bit heavier than the other songs, but then again it’s not too heavy. The flow of the song is all around perfect. I hope that Hands Like Houses blows up with this release, because they honestly deserve it a bit more than what they have. No, and no, I’m not just saying this because they’re one of my favorite bands. I’m saying this because it’s true. Hands Like House is one of a kind, an original, to say the least. No one could steal their style when they’re writing, which makes me pretty happy. It just shows that originality in music isn’t completely dead. “The House You Built”, is a song that kind of seems like they wrote it about a girl who’s trying to do something, but no matter what, people are always looking down on her. A lot of bands pick this topic, or something similar to this topic. It might be because it’s relatable. No matter what you do, and no matter who you are, people will always look down on you, and hope that you fail at something that you’re trying to do. “The house you build on solid ground, will be a home. In time, you'll see it.” Is a line in the song that’s the most enjoyable. I can see the band making the crowd sing this line the loudest at a show. Or at least, I’d hope so. This is one of my favorite lines off this album because of the meaning of the line. “Foutainhead”, is my all-time favorite song from Hands Like House, and my favorite song on the album (Obviously). These lines in the song “In a murmuring room full of critics and fakers, all waiting to take their seat.” and “Everyone's equal, but no-one's the same.” both show how Hands Like Houses has improved lyrically. Which, is the thing that most bands should focus on more often. The lyrics on this album honestly sold me. How each song has its own flow to it, is another thing that it is rather enjoyable. Now for “A Fire On A Hill”, Hands Like Houses honestly tried to end this album off on a good note, just like they did at the beginning. This album shows how bad that this band wants to make a good name for themselves, and how they really want to show people, or prove to the people that doubted them, and that they’re here to stay, and make music that they and their fans will love. They’re not
going anywhere anytime soon (hopefully). The post hardcore scene needs a band like this, and I’m glad that Hands Like Houses is that band.
Breakdown:
Cleans: The clean vocals are original, the vocalist has his own voice, and his own range, and his own vocal style. I saw some YouTube comments about their vocalist being “generic”, and “untalented”. Don’t you just love those kids? They have to be everywhere, on every song, bashing it. Honestly, the vocalist is FAR from being generic, or untalented. I saw some of their live videos, and he pulls it off live better than he does in the studio (in my opinion). As I said, post hardcore needed a band to help the genre out, and Hands Like Houses is the right band to do so. Instruments: The instrument play is pretty nice. It’s not too heavy, or too soft, it’s just right. Most post hardcore bands have breakdowns, and “chugs”, but Hands Like Houses don’t. They keep it soft for the most part. This isn't really a bad thing, it kind of shows that they’re doing what they want too, and that they're trying to be different, and original in this genre, which makes me pretty happy. It also saddens me that people could hate on a band like this. I can understand if they’re not your cup of tea, but doing it just do it, is pretty lame. Hands Like Houses will definitely change (or try too) the post hardcore music scene as we know it, and I’m right here ready for the ride.
Rating: 10/10
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