The Babies
Our House on the Hill - WOODSIST
FILTER Grade: 84%
By Paula Mejia on November 13, 2012
The Babies create indie folk tunes that are, on the surface, sweet. Yet where Vivian Girls’ Cassie Ramone and Woods’ Kevin Morby display a refined talent is in having their most morbid thoughts still shimmer with a youthful glow. Fuzzy while never saccharine, Our House on the Hill dispels any notion of a sophomore slump. With the entrance of bassist Brian Schleyer, and solid, plucky guitarlines, the result is a sumptuous follow-up, particularly with “Get Lost,” while “Slow Walkin” hits as a rambling soundtrack to aimless highway drives. Reaching outward from their traditional garage-folk vibe, “That Boy” forays with down-home riffs and country licks, while “Baby” reverberates with a roaring wall of sound. Even with choruses like “I’ve been on the road for way too long” and “I want to die,” infectious hooks and sugar-sweet duets of oohs and ahhs still incite shaking hips and sheepish grins.