Hound - Out Of Time

SRA 2014

The debut album by Philly rockers Hound allows each of us to scratch our rock itch, to indulge in an album that is relentless rock 'n' roll. Out Of Time consists of ten tracks, six of which are under three minutes in length. At less than twenty-eight minutes, this album doesn't allow for any superfluous bells or whistles, there's rockin' to be done.

The album begins full throttle with the rumbling drums and fuzzy guitar of "Affordable Hypnotist", a catchy, blues-inspired tune. If your need for speed was not sufficiently quenched, then tracks two and three will have you feeling satiated. "Cold Sweat" and "Little One" evoke the best of Motörhead. The sounds of the guitar, bass and drums thunder forwards, while Perry Shall's vocals elicit an eerie similarity to a young Lemmy's gruff voice.

At the halfway point, the band throws in a curve ball with the gentle finger–picking of "Colintro". It's true that momentum of an album is important, but equally important is the ability for band, and for their listeners, to take a breath, and that's what the band delightfully offers here. But don't fret, the engine revs throughout the remainder of the album, the band clearly well rested by the break.

For Hound, the singing seems to be an after thought vis-a-vie the instrumentation. Shall's vocals are always slightly distorted and pushed to the back of the mix. On Out Of Time, the band is clearly more interested in presenting their musical chops then anything else. The album is wrought full of catchy riffs with a rock 'n' roll sensibility, all of which allows us to drive headfirst in to a rock assault.

--Fredy M. Iuni hosts Hiway 1, Mondays at 7:00 PM on CJLO.