Localized Houses

With all the drizzle and unseasonably chilly nights we’ve had the past eight weeks, you might need a little reminder that it’s actually summertime in Colorado. Or maybe the rain gods will relent and you’ll need the perfect soundtrack to an upcoming backyard barbecue. Either way, Denver’s Houses have you covered with the second in their seasonally minded EP series, titled (of course) Summer.

The light shining on the eight-member band's five-song EP is more akin to that of northern California's dreamy afternoons than to the scorching, high-altitude sunburn-maker of Houses' hometown. Picking up where May's Spring left off, the band ups the pop in its blend of folk and indie. Houses has a sound infatuated with classic folk-rock outfits like America and the much hipper touchpoints of Wilco and Band Of Horses. Piano, electric guitar, and a crowd of vocal harmonies cloud the band’s ties to pure folk, as the act never quite commits to the all-or-nothing approach of modern pop hooks.

Simplicity and familiarity never let Houses down. The band’s not shy about pledging its love to Mile High neighborhoods “full of hooligans and drunks,” as singer-pianist Andrew Hamilton sings in “O, Queen City.” “Me And Mr. Kelly” gets downright Beatles-esque (though, regrettably, in a Paul rather than John or George sort of way), with rollicking piano-pounding and a flurry of vocal melodies. “Circles And Squares” melds '70s AM gold with indie’s slippery melodic sense for golden sound.

Mother Nature dropped the ball on the whole summertime thing this year, but Houses came through with a blast of sunshine that will still sound good in the dead of winter.

A.V. Club Grade: B