Home Counties - Humdrum

On maximalist debut album ‘Exactly As It Seems’, Home Counties quite literally found their groove; brimming with dry humour, and no shortage rhythm, it was hard not to draw comparisons with LCD Soundsystem or Hot Chip. It’s little wonder, then, that the six-piece enlisted Al Doyle - a key presence in both bands - to produce its follow up. ‘Humdrum’ serves up more of the band’s sardonic swipes with a yet more precise rhythmic punch. 


From the disco ball strut of ‘Ravelling’ to the jagged dance-punk of ‘Roundabout’, the producer’s influence is evident throughout. The group’s core sits at the duelling vocals of Will Harrison and Lois Kelly, and their interplay is really allowed to shine here. Not least than on ‘Spain’, a tug-of-war between an idealist clinging to hope and a jaded cynic ready to pack it in and join the self-styled ‘expats’ on the Costa Blanca. ‘When In Rome’, written in reflection on the 2024 riots, is the record’s most solemn number, expressing despair at the endless buck-passing, exploitation, and political point-scoring that followed. ‘Meet Me In The Flatroof’, meanwhile plays like a modern-day ‘Four Yorkshiremen’ sketch, its clout-chasing interlopers oblivious to the fact they’re themselves participating in gentrification. If ‘Exactly As It Seems’ was the sound of a band discovering their groove, ‘Humdrum’ is them sharpening it into a weapon.