Grunge rock is an iconic genre. From Nirvana to Foo Fighters, grunge embodies the rebellious attitude of the downtrodden garage band into a powerful and rabble-rousing musical force. This is a concept that Summer Houses understands perfectly, especially after taking a few listens to their latest album, “Frantic Hearts.”
“Television” starts the album off. The creeping echoes of the guitar set up an air of mystery before the percussions give it all a pulse. The drums and bass give the instrumentals a flow that naturally envelopes you as you listen, with a wavy quality spearheaded by the echoing guitars. The guitars get heavy right as the intro concludes, making a splash for the vocals to follow. The indie-style croons make an attention-grabbing impression that gets amplified by the strong, reverb-heavy melodic riffs that end up stealing the show in this track. The impact the vocals have adds the perfect edge to the track and reinforces the heavy rock influences, allowing the listener to get lost in the instrumental depth that the song has to offer.
“One More Mile” has ramblin’, free-wheeling guitar riffs with a punk-rock bounce to them, aided by the kick of the drums and the added bounce that the bassline gives. The deep guitar strums over the raspy, grunge-infused vocal performance gives the track an attitude that inspires a rowdy feeling in the listener that can get you off your feet. This feeling is especially felt when vocalist Clemente cries “Send help, I beat myself all the time. Just can’t conceive a better frame of mind.” These moments of rebellious attitude do a great job accenting the softer edge of the track, making “One More Mile” an emotional and musically robust track that will easily make it onto your rock playlist.
“Winner’s Circle” has deep, distorted grunge riffs that waste no time in setting up the eclectic aesthetic. Clemente’s vocals channel a Local H aesthetic as he introduces the track. The melancholic guitar riffs define the track with little in lieu of percussion to give the guitar a full feeling, leaving a track that evokes an emotionally powerful grungy aesthetic. The hollow distortions of the guitars combined with the raspy power of Clemente’s vocals offer a powerful grunge tribute that any fan can instantly recognize and uses it to tell an emotionally vulnerable story.
“Nightfall” is the closing track. The guitars creep in to create an air of mystery before the drums swing the track into a more groovy direction. The easygoing energy of the intro makes the listener feel comfortable as they slip into the jam, until Clemente’s wild vocals smacks them right in the face. The unrelenting power behind the vocals that lead into the guitars going wild as the bass and drums keep the swing of the track will pull any listener from their seat to swing to the rockabilly beat. When the melody gets stringy, it sets up the breakdown with the heavy, droning guitars backed by slammin’ drums that perfectly embody the feeling of a descent through the chaotic rock extravaganza. The track picks itself up with a swing, however, and finishes out with pure power.
“Frantic Hearts” is a nothing short of a grunge-fueled tour de force. Summer Houses has created an album that will awaken your inner 90’s rock fan, with eclectic tracks that each bring their own attitude and inspired rock sound. Whether be one of their epics such as “Frantic Start,” or one that evokes an instantly recognizable aesthetic in “Winner’s Circle,” any rock fan would be hard pressed to skip any track on their first listen through. With a great sense of power and attitude, “Frantic Hearts” is a strong release that has tracks that only grow on you more with each listen.
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