Album Review: Darkhaus - My Only Shelter

A new band introduces itself with the album «My Only Shelter». They call themselves "Darkhouse«, make music in five and deliver timeless modern rock, which is partly provided with electronic encores. You would have so much electronics in your blood with Gary Meskil, the founder of the US hardcore troupe «Pro-pain«, not at all suspected. With "Darkhouse» the bass player lets off steam in synth rock. Rupert Keplinger is a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter, comes from Hamburg, plays bass with «Eisbrecher» and has worked on various publications, including Peter Maffay's Tabaluga, worked together with Stephan Weidner or was involved in the last «Oomph» album. The vocals takes over at «Darkhouse» the hitherto unknown singer from Scotland Kenny Hanton. Musically, the formation creates what many try but can't do: an interesting arc of tension between very electronic sounds and hard guitars.

All in all, an international quintet has come together that comes from the USA, Scotland, Germany and Austria and the music is as varied as their origins. An ocean can separate or connect – in the case of «Darkhaus» clearly the latter. There's a lot of water between the band members, but it's this ocean of ideas, creativity and love of breaking new ground that binds them all together. «Darkhaus» may be new, but they are already timeless, so clear in their will to transcend genre boundaries that they have already created their very own drawer. Together they make sure that «Darkhaus» is everything: in one moment it's a steam engine with a feeling for radio-ready melodies, in the next moment it's the cement that holds together a fragile song structure with a lot of feeling. And then, a tiny moment later, the high-speed rotating disco ball that fills the dance floors with a mighty groove. The synth-rock style is a bit too pop-heavy for me personally, but even after repeated listening there is no boredom.

The total of 16 (!) titles that can be heard not only shine through mass, but above all through class and that down to the last note. Each track pulls the listener along immediately, stays in the ear for a long time afterwards and fascinates with wonderfully catchy melodies and craftsmanship. At first, Kenny Hanton's voice is reminiscent of hard rock bands, but it quickly becomes clear that the palette is much richer. Musically, Darkhaus is difficult to classify. Rock, darkwave and sometimes a few borrowings from metal are recognizable. In short, the listener is presented with a very successful mix. The opener "Life Worth Living" begins with dark electronics, but soon shows where the musical journey is going. Track 2 «Grace Divine» follows on seamlessly from the predecessor and Kenny's voice also conveys pure joy in singing. «Ghost» is the third number on the album and is kept a little quieter. The song was released as a single on October 23rd and has since been available as an official video clip. In the video, the band makes music in front of the idyllic backdrop of the garden of an American country house and the clip is about the heavy loss of a loved one. «Ghost» is characterized by an emotional and powerful interpretation in Kenny's voice.

DARKHAUS - Ghost (OFFICIAL VIDEO)

Powerful with many extended riffs, «Break Down The Walls» continues. It's rock music that just goes into the blood, but also convinces with solo elements. The following track «Our Time» demonstrates great dynamics, from quiet passages to a catchy, powerfully conveyed refrain. Gentle electric tones open «Don't Close Your Eyes». But the powerful refrain and the catchy rhythm quickly prevail in this song as well. “Breaking The Silence” sounds somewhat ballad-like in parts, but also very varied. Kenny Halan's ever-changing voice is impressive here. Romance and driving guitars, the song «Hour Of Need» combines both. A song with catchy character and a refrain that gets under your skin and moves mind and soul. Catchy hooks and melodies run through the entire album. Simple, but appropriate and understandable texts ensure the recognition value. In his own words, perfect for fans of emotionally stimulating songwriting a la "HIM", "Depeche Mode" and "Rammstein". But I only partially agree with that, because the band and the album are characterized by a certain uniqueness.

The ballad "Apostle" provides a musical point of rest on the album. No song is like the other, with every song there is something new to discover musically. This also applies to the extremely disco-friendly «Son Of A Gun» or «Drive», a song that combines hard riffs with a very melodic vocal part. "Angelina" ultimately proves that Darkhaus are quite rightly located in the dark music scene. It's a dark rock song that's bound to wow crowds at the next Subway to Sally concert. «Darkhaus» will support the tour of the headlining band around frontman Eric Fish next spring. Icebreaker co-founder Jochen ‹Noel Pix› Seibert has a hand in the song «Breaking The Silence» and gives it the «Eisbrecher Club Cut», in which the electronic side is heavily emphasized and the harsh beats invite you to dance. Breaks and twists bordering on Dub Step complete the resulting version of the title. As an encore, Kinky took on the opener "Life Worth Living" and created a dark dance version of it. Crossing genres, the team of five uses elements that turn conventional titles into real catchy tunes, some of which are suitable for clubs and also show potential for classics.

The new and simultaneous debut album "My Only Shelter" captivates with catchy melodies and a bunch of rocking guitars. The groove runs like a red thread through the album. The mixture of styles mentioned above ensures variety, but also the various moods that are created. Sometimes the songs seem emotional, then again epic or snotty and ballad-like moments like in "Apostle" are not missing. The different speeds of the compositions also contribute to the fact that "My Only Shelter" comes across as entertaining. Only the elements of surprise are missing and a touch more independence would look good on «Darkhaus». At this point, however, the fun factor of this disc is worth mentioning, which can definitely outweigh the downer. Darkhaus is not just any new band on the ever expanding music market. They stand out from the average with a lot of creativity and the mixture of rock, melancholy, dynamics and irrepressible joy in playing and singing makes "My Only Shelter" a recommendation for friends of well-done rock music and across the genre.

Track list:

1. Life Worth Living
2. Grace Divine
3. Ghost
4. Break Down The Walls
5. Our Time
6. Don't close your eyes
7. Breaking the Silence
8. Hour of Need
9. Looks Like Rain
10. Apostle
11. Son Of A Gun
12. Drive
13. angelina
14. Hurts Like Hell
15. Breaking The Silence (Eisbrecher ”Club Cut”) By Noel Pix
16. Life Worth Living (Kinky J Mix) By Kinky J

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