House of Heroes...

"I could write page after page about how much I like HOH music." That is the sentence that I wanted to start this blog with but then I began thinking: "Could I actually write page upon page upon page of how much I enjoy their music?" I'm not sure that I could.

I find that I have a difficult time expressing why some music is brilliant while other music...isn't. I don't want to be unfair to anybody but I hear so much music that just sounds the same. Is that wrong? Not necessarily. I think the easiest route in the world to take is that of the cynic and at times my first reaction to music is cynical and I fail to give the artist a chance. It is my ongoing intent to get past my bloated sense of self importance and to appreciate music instead of looking down my nose at it.

The delightful thing about House of Heroes is that I don't have to force myself to do anything. I jump right to the enjoyment and skip the effort.

Their new music is amazing. I mean that. I am AMAZED by it. The lyrical themes, the musical movements, the riskiness of it all. Risky? Maybe that isn't the right word (I told you I'm not good at this), but to me it feels risky. They are putting out something that, while it has homages to other pieces or brilliant music, feels unique and fresh. It's intelligent. It's...

I don't know what the heck it is but I like it enough to bug people about it. I've e-mailed friends and family about it. It has become the music that I play for people who don't listen to RadioU anymore.

Again, I feel like I'm not expressing myself well, so I'm going to stop. I'm embedding two videos of the guys talking about two of the best songs on the album. "Code Name Raven" and "In the Valley of the Dying Sun." They're both amazing.... Oh, and they don't reference it, but "Raven" was Rambo's code name in First Blood.