America Give Up combines the history and influences of indie rock in one high-energy, cocky little package to be consumed easily. The lazy comparison is with an early Strokes and the raspy voice and leather jacket of Howler’s frontman and figurehead, Jordan Gatesmith, certainly bear a certain debt to Julian Casablancas. However, Howler are more than just a Strokes, Jesus and Mary Chain or Ramones tribute act. The influence of these bands (and many more, going right back to the 60s and before) can certainly be felt throughout the album, but Howler have come up with some frankly fantastic tunes for a debut album.
The classic themes of teenage angst, the elusive girl and, naturally, driving a car into a river come effotlessly to the young band and sound all the more sincere for it. When Gatesmith asks, ‘Where will you be in 2023? In someone else’s arms?’ he’s using the tried and tested, time-honoured formula of singing about love and sticking a decent riff behind it. This formula is particularly evident on those songs that are used on the album from their earlier EP – namely ‘This One’s Different’, ‘Wailing (Making Out)’ and ‘Told You Once’ – which are on the album in a scratchier, more raw version than those familiar with the EP will remember.
Howler get away with sticking to the formula by producing excellent songs from it – the riffs are catchy and punky and the lyrics honest. It’s unusual to come across a debut so full of energy where every song is of high quality, even if the songs offer little originality. A possible exception is the track ‘Pythagorean Fearem’ which, among the distorted vocals and sounds, is reminiscent of early music from The Horrors, who moved on to produce expansive pieces of music on their two previous albums.
The rest of the album is a thrashy, hand-clappy, growly voiced collection of songs that show a lot of promise. Much like the Maccabees, The Horrors or Primal Scream, this band deserve the time to develop. Howler are a band that offer much for both sides of the ‘guitar music is dead’ debate – they give little that’s new, but equally they’re very good at what they do. This isn’t an album that’s going to change anyone’s minds. Fans of The Vaccines or The Strokes are going to love this album – it builds on everything that’s great about indie music. Those that are muttering that nobody sings about politics anymore aren’t going to have their minds changed. From the standard of songwriting, Howler are definitely a band that are worth giving the time to truly find their feet. Every song is worthy of being a single. For now they’re a band that have all the looks, all the hype, and are going to live up to it with this album for indie fans. Come summer, we’ll all be standing in an overflowing tent singing ‘I’m so tired of making out’ back at Gatesmith and grinning. Because if they can write songs like this at nineteen, they’re a band with huge potential.
4 STARS
