After a couple of reunion albums that presented a laid-back take on the noisy dream pop made by their original incarnation,
the House of Love's leader,
Guy Chadwick, cut all ties to the past, bar the band's name, for 2022's
State of Grace. That means guitarist
Terry Bickers is once again out of the fold, replaced by
Keith Osborne of
Idlewild. It also means that the band have shifted gears away from the melancholy jangle of previous comeback albums towards a more energetic, blues-rock-inspired, country-rock adjacent sound. Hearing banjos and harmonica on a
House of Love album is something of a shock, and so is the idea of the very British
Chadwick delving into the byways of Americana and wrapping his arching, sneering vocals around tunes that rollick and weep like the offspring of C&W troubadours like
Lee Hazlewood and
the Band. "Light of the Morning" is the kind of maximalist attempt at the genre
Primal Scream keeps trying that comes complete with gospel backing vocals, banjo, harmonica, and, luckily, some big, fat hooks. It's showy, a little silly, and, not coincidentally, a whole bunch of fun. So is the light-hearted rambler "Queen of Song." The more subdued forays into C&W storytelling are also successful, with
Chadwick bringing some lightly weathered experience to the vocals; "Just One More Song" even trips lightly into mid-'70s lachrymose barroom balladry with surprisingly decent results. The songs that work the best here are definitely those that stick closest to classic
HOL territory. "Into the Laughter" pairs a nice melody with some circular,
Bickers-like guitar swoon, and the title track has a propulsive beat, crashing guitars, and a chorus that has the catchiness their best work has always delivered. ~ Tim Sendra
![The Lonesome Crowded West [Bonus Track]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0767981144627_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg "The Lonesome Crowded West [Bonus Track]")
