Now part of the impressive roster at Hopeless Records, ‘A Place Of Our Own’ sees Have Mercy take another step forward as they refine the sound that they impressed with on their début ‘The Earth Pushed Back’. The lyrical honesty is still at the forefront, emphasised immediately by album opener ‘To Convey’ but the instrumentation throughout the album is often more muscular and the songs sound more focussed as a result.
Have Mercy have always been adept at balancing different aspects of their style, and reining in their sound in when most beneficial to the songs. ‘Two Years’ may come across as relatively calm during the verse, but the line of “I had a life and I had friends, and I miss all of them” with Brian Swindle’s voice constantly cracking from emotion is sure to resonate deeply with anyone who has ever felt alienated or alone. ‘Howl’ employs a lighter and more melodic approach but it still packs a punch lyrically, whilst the tender and acoustic ‘Inch By Inch’ allows a moment of reflection compared to the energy of the songs around it.
It’s this perfect balance within their song writing that helps ‘A Place Of Our Own’ to be such an enthralling listen. However there are times when, compared to the rest of the record, Have Mercy don’t quite get it right. Whilst the solid and well written ‘Pawn Takes Rook’ would be a highlight on almost any other album, in the context of the other songs here it doesn’t quite grab your attention in the way that the rest do.
For the most part ‘A Place Of Our Own’ sounds completely original, but there are occasional echoes of ‘End Is Forever’ era The Ataris to be heard, with ‘Plastic Covered Furniture’ being perhaps the best song Kris Roe never wrote. It is certainly an album that deserves to leave its mark on the scene in the same way.
Penultimate track ‘Nails And Teeth In Pavement’ is perhaps the rawest show of emotion on the record and album closer ‘Lean’ is equally cathartic. However, despite the sometimes sombre lyrical content, ‘A Place Of Our Own’ never feels down or dejected, instead constantly offering a sense of hope. It’s a vital and powerful listen, the understated honesty of the lyrics making it easy to relate to, and the strong musicianship on show ensuring it’s a captivating experience from the first note to the last.
CHRIS HILSON