Music

Mylittlebrother – Howl

Proving that the life expectancy of rock music is not over-not by a long shot-mylittlebrother’s latest long-player, Howl (Due October 30, 2020), is a testament to rock evolution. Fueled by melodies, harmonies, energy, and lyrical interplay, Howl excels! The subject matter is a little dark in places, but the music elevates it all to a feeling of celebration.

The title-track (seen / heard here) takes on giving everything to a relationship, with lead songwriter and frontman, Will Harris, singing:

“I, I thought you were ill.
So I gave all the blood I could spare,
All the blood I could spill.
I, I thought you were sad.
So I gave to you all of the hope
for the world that I had.”

And even though that relationship has failed, a willingness to do it all over again because of love:

“So If you want it,
I could fall again for you,
Just howl!“

Starting with the root melody, lightly played, Howl (the single) burst forth with a crescendo that starts with the first thoughts and builds to the refrain.

Throughout the LPs basically 10 tracks (a radio edit of Responsibility is track 11) there’s a powerful musical bond. To be sure, the band is tight or loose as needed, portraying a nearly live feel, which is tough to pull off in the studio. There is smoothness in delivery and just enough rawness in the elements that it ends up feeling live-to-track.

One of Vodka’s favorite tracks here is Janey, and I can’t really tell you why. It’s mostly the positive feeling it evokes, even though it’s a lover-did-me-wrong sort of song.  Honestly, that goes for the collection throughout.  Even though the subject matter is mostly darker, the melodies and hooks make the messages seem lighter. After all, who can take a steady dose of darkness? The times are dark enough already!

Responsibility, (as noted before, appearing twice) is basically about taking responsibility in a relationship but strip away the love aspects, and it could just as easily be a rallying call to political ineptitude that runs rampant worldwide right now. 

Goldmine looks at the lack of growth of a previous love and states, I’ve moved on:

“Girl you were my teenage fantasy,
But you do nothing for the grown-up me.
Because you’re everything you used to be.
Wait and see.”

There have been tons of articles over the years about rock being dead. If there was ever a band that could prove that wrong, it’s mylittlebrother. They are dedicated to rock, its energy, its infinite palette of sounds and textures, and its power to translate to a broad audience. Not every genre’ can claim that and not every band can pull that off.  It takes a band like mylittlebrother, which combines both instrumental and lyrical mastery, to drive that home. With eight years under their belt since the dawn of their debut EP, Nosedive, in 2012, this is a band that gets better at their craft with each release.

Personnel-wise, mylittlebrother is very much a total-sum band. While lead songwriting and singing duties may center around Will Harris (piano, lead vocals), the band would be a mere shell of itself without the vocal harmonies and instrumentation provided by Dan Mason (guitar, vocals), Robin Howson (bass, vocals) and Simon Buttress (drums, vocals). These artists add both rough and smooth edges where needed to give these 10 tracks the textures that they demand.

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There’s no active website for the band as yet, so your best bet for additional information is to hit up their Facebook or Twitter pages. You can pick up the band’s music by heading up to their Big Stir Records page, or hit up either the Big Stir Bandcamp or their own bandcamp.com pages for both digital and physical offerings.

Check out a rock band with pop chops by picking up some mylittlebrother tunes today and watch for the release of Howl in just two days!

Note: With Covid-19 still around, probably to be with us for some time, artists like mylittlebrother and many others need your purchases to keep their heads above water. If your situation allows it, consider purchasing more in these tough times. –Vodka