Hailing from Szczecin, Poland is Poorhouse a collective of musicians who base their music around a feeling rather than a specific concept. Their music is a hard rock metal, hybrid and their debut album is ‘’XII.”
From the opening of ‘’Asylum in Your Head’ This is an album that is built around hard edges and toughened survival instincts. It is a very bass-centric album with lots of individual intros that lead into the crunch of the guitar and an adept rhythm section as on ‘’Migraine’’’ and the cinematic-infused ‘’Special One’’. At times it is symphonic in arrangement and the stringed instruments make a welcome addition as on ‘’No Name’ and add that extra atmosphere and depth to some great riffs. It is a mid-paced muscle yet ‘’Open the Cage “’ swaggers with that Western feeling yet has that unmistakable Eastern European vocal inflection.
Poorhouse is a band that defies typical hard rock/metal ideas and notions. Their thoughts and experiences are captured honestly and authentically on a record that is as surprising as it instantly recognizable. Bleeding Colossus has that swirling diving riff that is complimented by some challenging times changes and dynamics that is heavy and powerful. Yet Outro is also another brief stirring mood mood-laden piece that closes the album with a definite sense of gravitas.
‘’XII” marks an interesting debut that is full of ideas and genre defiance that merges the classical with the hard-hitting. With the band further pursuing their ideas. ‘’XII” marks a great introduction in their quest to create music both unique and original.
Poorhouse: Facebook
Release Year: 2024
Label: self-released
Category: Album
Country: Poland
Reviewed by Sparky
