19 Apr 2024
House Of Shem - Harmony Album Review
06 Dec 2013 // A review by Asmith
Upon acquiring the third release from kiwi reggae artists House Of Shem I was filled with anticipation, eager to see what they had in store for me this time, and I wasn't left disappointed!
With three part harmonies remaining a heavy base within the music, the switch between vocalists/songwriters is felt throughout the album all while remaining distinctly House Of Shem.
The topics are varied with everything from serenading, whanau, and of course a heavy rastafari influence.
Standouts for me were Hard Road feat. Big Mountain with guitar licks tearing through me, a lyrically empowering track about never giving up.
Jah Know was another standout for me, the acoustic guitar setting a chilled backdrop for some irie music, such a good track I even managed to ignore the auto tune.
Possibly my favourite off the entire album though was actually a cover, The Beatles Let It Be. It's not very often I find myself enjoying a cover more than the original music on an album, but this is right up there for me. Awesome.
I've definitely found myself some new summer favourites, and just in time too! Make sure you get out and grab yourself a copy to help bring in the summer vibes.
Harmony
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About House Of Shem
Two of Carl's sons, Te Omeka and Isaiah, completed the line-up. They not only provide harmonies and play keyboards, they are both lead vocalist and composers in their own right. It is this blood link and family bond that renders the sum of their combined voices as something really extraordinary. Each of the three has their own distinct song writing style and voice, effectively giving the band three lead singers. The harmonies are sublime and the precision of their ensemble performance is phenomenal.
House Of Shem’s long awaited second album Island Vibration was recorded in 2010 at Auckland’s Roundhead studios. The band enlisted the engineering expertise of the legendary Mr Errol Brown. Brown is renowned for recording and mixing albums with the best in reggae music including Bob Marley & The Wailers, Burning Spear and Third World and has worked on Grammy award winning albums by Damian Marley, Julian Marley and Lauren Hill. Island Vibration was then mixed at Bob Marley’s own Tuff Gong studios in Jamaica by Errol Brown. Island Vibration was released on 14th Feb 2011 and debuted at #1 on the Official RIANZ NZ Charts and iTunes.
Visit the muzic.net.nz Profile for House Of Shem
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