All This Huxley – Home Stockholm Review: A Symphony of Inspiration

An eclectic sound is usually one that is difficult to achieve. All This Huxley takes the definition of this word and parades it across a football field in their EP, Home Stockholm. If you only listened to one or two tracks off of this EP it would be hard to say you experienced it. The band has taken many creative liberties with each track and speaks to the bands’ origins and style. This wild style of songwriting, however, may come off as scatterbrained to some for a five-track EP.

The opening track, Stockholm invokes a very bluesy feeling with a low range vocal performance front and center. The rambling guitar and strong bass go well with the calculated percussion which is just enough to keep your head bobbing with the groove. It’s an interesting track with clever lyrics and deserves a listen to understand why he proclaims “they said at birth I’d be a lonely soul.” Comrade, the track that follows, serves to push the EP into a different direction completely with a much sunnier track by comparison. The plucky guitar dances along the groove of the bass while the percussion lends itself to a much more traditional upbeat indie feel. It is a song about being personal, as he proclaims “If you wanna get to know me, you gotta get through me!” The track sets a standard for those that follow, as the vocal performance heard in Stockholm is never heard again. Both this track and Dunkirk that follows let the instrumentals speak for them more than the vocals.

Dunkirk is a track that strikes a mood. It is a palpable and cinematic feeling of speed and action, like a chase scene in a movie. It feels yet again like another change of pace for the EP as it evolves to a more Pink Floyd aesthetic and has a much more rock and roll feel. The following two tracks feel like the true soul of the EP. Both of the tracks “One of These Things” and “Ring Buoy” bring the vocal performance out of its shell and allow it to run free. Whether invoking a David Bowie aesthetic in “One of These Things” as he spouts eclectic lines such as “With her eyes she said, bring your shoes and your very own Chevrolet!” Or in “Ring Buoy” in which he recants a treacherous tale of why a “stolen ring buoy means a stolen life.” These tracks bring the vocals front and center and shows off the same eclectic charm as the instrumentals.

Home Stockholm is an EP that is definitely worth your time. With their own personality front and center at all times, the EP sounds like a collection of singles off of a “Greatest Hits” collection. Yet, it is only within the last two tracks do you hear the true range of their robust vocal aesthetic. Going from Stockholm to the rest of the tracks may seem jarring as well. Keep in mind these are small nitpicks in an otherwise excellent EP. With a focused concept, a full length All This Huxley album could tell a story that you would need to hear to believe. Until then, we will have to settle with excellence that is Home Stockholm.