House Of Brothers - Document 1 EP

The third coming of an artist previously surrounded by inspired musical arrangements, writing and results, yet Andrew Jackson’s implementation of a newly explored set of sounds shows complete contrast to his previous work with The Murder of Rosa Luxemburg and Scarecrows. On the ‘Deadman’ EP, first indications showed a potential star in the making, one strapped to an acoustic guitar, with beautiful consequences. Yet this awaited return sees a slight side-step into band territory, with each of the members of House of Brothers not content with seeing Jackson steal the show because of his impressive musical CV.

This egalitarian policy of music-making probably made for a less speedy, less care-free recording process. And it sort of shows. Even the impressive affairs, the opening two tracks, title-track and ‘The Twilight Of Idols’ give an impression of being un-natural. For all we know, they could have been spontaneous, roused successes recorded in one take, but the overall feel is one of everything being over-done, shunning out alternative ideas and sticking to a safe formula of bullish full-band performance.

‘Jennifer’’s interesting turns in structure, ‘Oh Please Let Me Sleep’’s tiresome state being exemplified in both music and title - there’s plenty to appreciate. But when compared to the debut EP, you can’t help but feel slightly underwhelmed, maybe even let-down. ‘Document 1′ is probably only marginally indicative of any further steps the band take but for an act hardly in a territory of being well-known, with the freedom to relax, new ideas are required and this sophomore EP is particularly scarce of any.