There's just something great about melodic hardcore when it's done the right way. Bands come and go; some make a mark and have a solid following for years to come, some fade into obscurity before they ever get a chance. Right now I'm going to bet on House on Fire being grouped with the former. This Florida band features members of Unitas, Panthro UK, and Discount. I'm not sure if this is the style I'd really expect from that amalgamation of bands, but nonetheless, this 7" is spectacular.
Like I said at the beginning of this review, when melodic hardcore is done right, few things can top it. House on Fire does it right. Shredding guitars, powerful, gritty, yet catchy vocals, and heartfelt lyrics, I'm not sure what else you could ask for here. The EP starts off very strongly with the title track. "House on Fire", with its gang vocals and sharp lyricism is a great introduction. I'd have to say that this is my favorite song on here; I guess I'm a sucker for this kind of urgency. The band calms things down a bit for the second track, "Texas Rattlesnake". This song isn't as angry as the first track, but there's still an undercurrent of intensity flowing through it. I can't say that there are tracks that stand out far above the rest, because they're all very good. When I get something to review, I always make sure that I listen to it the whole way through, just to be fair. Sometimes this is a chore (Lucerin Blue), but in this case I wouldn't dream of not listening to this EP the whole way through.
There's not really much else to talk about. I don't think there are enough superlatives out there to say just how good this is, and I don't want this to sound more overbearing than it already does. It's only August and there are still a number of high anticipated releases that I haven't listened to yet, but this is a very strong contender for the top EP of the year. If you like melodic hardcore, or just good music in general, put this on your list; you'll thank me later. I believe this band is slated to release a full length on No Idea, I can't wait.
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