A few years ago, brothers Matt and Justin Faircloth were known as the Houston Brothers. In 2004, they put their brotherly musical work on hold, took a break and have just reemerged under the simple moniker - The Houstons. They’ve got some new band members in tow, and they sound more confident than ever on this new release, called Still.

However, while they do sound vastly more sure of themselves than ever before, Still isn’t the most memorable album I’ve spun this year. While there’s some wonderfully ragged-yet-slick production present here, the band themselves aren’t terribly distinctive. For example, “Hardwoods” sounds like Perfecting Lonliness-era Jets To Brazil being filitered through The Wallflowers, and it’s biggest saving grace comes via an occasional synth line. Nice harmonies in the chorus, but nothing else really jumps out and grabs you by the hair… and this is already the second track.

Things can get a bit shoegazy on Still, as evidenced by the drab and droning “Magnolia”, and it’s a nice soundtrack to the dropping temperatures. But that’s my biggest issue with Still… it’s simply “nice”. Doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it mostly makes the same wheels a million other bands are spinning. I mean, if “Frozen Ride” isn’t a dead ringer for Paul McCartney’s classic “Junk”, I’ll eat my own hat. Of course, despite the uncanny similarities between the two tracks, “Ride” becomes the album’s best track when they veer into concentrating on their strengths - those ever-present, rock solid vocal harmonies.

My second biggest problem with Still and The Houstons in general is that while the sound is generally relaxed and spacious, I can’t figure out for the life of me why this band needs eight members. Is it for atmospherics? If that’s the case, it mostly works, but it seems absolutely unneccessary, especially when the songs are so slow-growing in the catchiness department.

I’m not really sure what The Houstons are trying to achieve, but they’ve succeeded in making a pleasant record that I’ve enjoyed somewhat while it’s on… but I’ll probably never think twice about it again after a month or two. If nothing else, the Faircloth brothers get points for a valiant effort, you know?

The Houstons - Plans Get Laid.mp3

Get a copy of Still for your own bad self from MoRisen.
Stream some tracks at The Houston’s MySpace page.