PHOTOS: Houndmouth, Ben Kweller, Modern Love Child in Boston, MA 02.20.19

Wednesday, February 20th was certainly a full house from back to front. There to introduce Houndmouth, the headliner of the hour, were not one, but two openers; alternative rock artist Modern Love Child (Jonny Shane Jr.) and American singer/songwriter Ben Kweller, who has been making indie-rock songs for over 20 years. Both openers came ready to move about the tightly crowded stage with more energy and heart one could have anticipated at the top of the night.

And then, Houndmouth, which includes Matt Meyers (guitar, vocals), Shane Cody (drums, vocals), and Zak Appleby (bass, vocals).

Something to appreciate about Houndmouth is not just their stylistic range, but, perhaps more importantly, their loyalty to their personal artistic need to explore and express. Golden Age, their most recent full-length album was released on August 3rd of 2018 and followed by a four-song EP titled California Voodoo in November. Both were crafted in stark contrast to the Americana, modern blues of yester-albums Little Neon Limelight and From the Hills Below the City, and many bands do this kind of thing. But when Houndmouth played Paradise Rock Club on February 20th, 2019, they weren’t selling their newest product end-to-end; they were celebrating their musical expanse across new and old songs alike, amongst themselves lovingly and with their fans gratefully. There was singing, stomping, yelling, dancing all the same, whether it had synth-driven ambiance or good old-fashion riff and twang, and surely only a band like Houndmouth could do both perfectly.

To buy or stream Houndmouth’s new EP California Voodoo click HERE.