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House of Lords: Indestructible

James Christian – vocals, Jimi Bell – guitars, Chris McCarvill – bass guitars and BJ Zampa – drums have together become House of Lords' most stable line-up and are celebrating their tenth anniversary together with the band's tenth album, the aptly named Indestructible which follows World Upside Down, Come to My Kingdom, Cartesian Dreams, Big Money and 2014's Precious Metal. Obviously this late in their career and given that only singer Christian remains from the classic line-up there are naysayers. These types would be very much barking up the wrong tree. All the aforementioned albums have plenty going for them especially if you are a fan of huge hooks and splendid guitar from the ever reliable Jimi Bell and Indestructible keeps things motoring along nicely. Quite where it fits in alongside the band's canon is difficult to ascertain at this point in time as time and distance will be required in order to work that out. Give "Stand and Deliver" a listen if you don't believe me as it combines everything that is satisfying about HoL; James Christian's always excellent vocals, a sizzling solo from Mr Bell and a tune which gets quickly ingrained in the mind. Not that you have to wait until the final track as essentially all the songs are of similar ilk.

They don't stray far from the tried and tested formula – that worked so well when the original line-up released Power and the Myth didn't it? However, lyrically things are somewhat improved and more respectable for a vocalist of around sixty years old. "The album is heavier in the beginning, but we love songs that are both melodic and heavy" says Christian, "and the idea was to fill the best of both on one cd without sounding like two different bands." I'd say he can be satisfied with a solid job.


Track Listing:
  1. Go To Hell
  2. Indestructible
  3. Pillar of Salt
  4. 100 Mph
  5. Call My Bluff
  6. We Will Always Be One
  7. Die To Tell
  8. Another Dawn
  9. Eye Of The Storm
  10. Ain't Suicidal
  11. Stand and Deliver

Added: June 30th 2015
Reviewer: Simon Bray
Score:
Related Link: Band Website
Hits: 2021
Language: english

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House of Lords: Indestructible
Posted by Steven Reid, SoT Staff Writer on 2015-06-30 15:07:08
My Score:

Having maintained a solid line-up for ten years and having produced a serious hot streak of albums during that time both together and apart, House Of Lords it seems, can do little wrong. Recent releases Precious Metal and Big Money have revealed a band comfortable to express exactly who they are, while the solo outing, Lay It All On Me, from singer James Christian and Maxx Explosion releases Forever and Dirty Angels, from the rest of the band – Jimi Bell (guitar), Chris McCarvill (bass) and BJ Zampa (drums) – have laid down a marker of the superb form this quartet find themselves in.

Oddly for a band so reliant on big layers of keyboards to help get their message across, HoL no longer have a full time keyboard player and yet once more on Indestructible, while Christian's voice is beyond question and Bell's guitar work exemplary, it is the supporting synths which cement the HoL sound in the manner we've become accustomed. The surging rush of the title track is a big hit of bombast which oozes well placed confidence, while "Go To Hell" (which does possess a rather pointless keyboard intro – a tradition the band had seemed to have dropped), is one of those songs which is bold on execution and mighty in impact; the riff from Bell utterly captivating. "100mph" continues the onslaught, a brooding verse bursting into a chant along chorus that simply never gets tired and which lives with you long after the album is over.

House Of Lords have always been equally adept at pulling out a classy slower number and on this occasion it's "Eye Of The Storm" which hits that sweet spot, Christian's ability to draw every ounce of emotion from his lyrics once more in evidence. McCarvill and Zampa also play their parts in full, the thunderous drums on "Ain't Suicidal" and authoritative bass laying down a mighty foundation, as Bell darts between fiery solo fiend and magnificent riff monster. Christian, as expected, lays down yet another of those unmistakable vocals which has enthralled melodic rock fans for more years than he (or they!) care mention. And as if all that wasn't enough, "Stand And Deliver" goes a long way to disproving the theory that all current MHR albums are merely filler packed, front loaded releases with little substance, closing the album out in ebullient fashion.

Amazingly it's 27 years since House Of Lords first captured our imaginations with their self titled debut. However umpteen personnel shuffles later, the ten year strong Christian, Bell, McCarvill, Zampa version of House Of Lords have released an album capable of rivalling the very best of this band's output and that's high praise indeed.



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