Hauspoints: Eel Feeling – Review

The chief heads at Crackedankles are at it again, having brought us Michael, THANK, dead things, TV Face and Hotwax to name a few, adding Chorley’s Hauspoints to their wonderful and crazy world is a genius move. Wayne AF Carey reviews.

If you’re expecting an onslaught of clever modern grunge (HotWax), or the sonic sounds of (Michael), look away. Hauspoints are in a different place altogether. Tom Robinson (6 Music) has described them as a hybrid of LCD Soundsystem and Squid and while he’s got a point with some tracks, they go beyond that. I’m looking more at early Talking Heads, Roxy Music, Devo, Hello Cosmos and Warmduscher with a Northern twist. That’s my opinion.

As their press say:

Exploring a distinctly northern viewpoint on modernity, Hauspoints’ songs are like a love letter to popular culture, finding beauty in the mundane minutiae and celebrating the quirkiness of human existence.

Established on a dilapidated industrial estate at the foot of an overgrown hill in darkest Lancashire, their debut album, Eel Feeling, is a beat-heavy rasp that treads an unfurrowed path aside multiple genres without straying too far into the obscure.

It’s an accurate description as I go on to describe their sound…

Opener 88.3 ONFM reminds me of the QOTSA radio excerpts from Songs For The Dead (which carry on throughout the album), yet with Hauspoints’ own comedic voiceovers and clever old samples slotted in- “Why don’t you make another clever reference to someone else’s words of wisdom” A class lyric from the start without any fuckin’ music yet! The(e) Big I Am is a crunching guitar start backed with sax and a great singalong chorus that has touches of The Cribs in there, seriously. It’s an anthem! “I am the motherfucker that cuts you up at every roundabout, I’m straddling two parking bays, I am your credit score” Clever and funny lyrics from the start. Hear No, See No is funky a fuck with great sounds and the opening line “Hear no see no, Brian Eno” which becomes the main line with some wonk keyboards and sax slipping out. Robert De Niro even gets a check before an infectious slice of a guitar riff belts outs towards the end. Class!

Next up is Meat Bingo which starts with a great bass and drum intro. Think a modern funked up Meat Is Murder if I say so meself. “Wake up and smell the bovril” pronounces Palmo on vocals as the lyrics tell his own futuristic take on meat eating. If you’re vegetarian I suggest you skip the video unless you have a sick bucket to hand. The lyrics are just as fuckin’ bad. “The choice is yours” states Palmo before the guitars come crashing in with exemplary drumming and bass from Charlie and Nik. Common Knowledge is another belter that brings in the LCD Soundsystem comparisons yet also has the sound of Warmduscher floating around. A repetitive drumbeat backed with Talking Heads funk. Head To Toe carries on the funk with a Nile Rodgers-esque start backed by a warped dub keyboard that makes it all dark. The vocals echo and there’s tension abound. “Your mother’s got a face like thunder, and a smile like Accrington brick”. Even in the dark there’s a funny as fuck lyric.

Catflap starts off with some dark keyboards yet builds into a euphoric banger that nods to Hello Cosmos with clever lyrics that Ben Robinson would be proud of. This group are actually on a par with them when it comes to sound and ambition. A proper trip hop techno vibe flowing throughout. A standout. What About It has a great bit of guitar for the intro backed by some ace drumming and more captivating spoken word vocals that tell another comedic tale. “What about that time Jim faked his own death, living out his life as Mr Mojo Rising?” That’s just one line as he mentions the Thin White Duke, Lou Reed, David Byrne, Jimmy Cauty and the rest. It’s all good.

Title track Eel Feeling is another top number led by a great bass line and some jangling guitars, mixed in with a tenor sax sound, taking off to the planet of nowhere near here. “Pissed in my pocket told me it was raining” another clever line from Palmo who does a much better job than that bloke from Yard Act. The guitars come crashing in grunge like towards the end with some great stop start technique which sounds excellent. Two Pounds Of Dirt ends the album with a bit of full on Monday’s funk, a great bass line and again a nod to Warmduscher yet with that Northern twist Hello Cosmos inject into a tune. There’s even a bit of Sault going in there which gives you the scope this group are aiming at. Six minutes of psych Northern Soul funk backed with lyrics that get your mind ticking. A great wig out that wobbles to a great ending with some more old radio excerpts and a dirty techno outro.

A surprising debut album from the house of Cracked Ankles that will have you grinning and dancing simultaneously and will surely be one of your albums of the year.

Facebook |  Instagram | YouTube | Bandcamp 

Words by Wayne Carey, Reviews Editor for Louder Than War. His author profile is here