Porches
The House
Domino
New York musician Aaron Maine records under the name Porches. Humble almost anti-folk beginnings morphed into recording synth pop tunes in Maine’s New York apartment, before Porches grew to become a fully fledged touring band, that previously included Frankie Cosmos (aka Greta Kline) on bass. The House is Porches’ third and most ambitious record.
Maine says of The House that it is a diary of sorts, and that it began with a sense of urgency. 18 months in the making, with the songwriter using The House as an exercise in documenting his immediate experiences, the result is a record that has some shining moments, and others that come across as ideas that were never fully realised.
Leave The House has strong beats and a vocal melody that grabs from the get-go, before it disperses into a swirling set of harmonies with the aid of musical chameleon (Sandy) Alex G. Find Me has Maine tackling the topic of anxiety and isolation with a tune that would be most comfortable on the dance floor of a crowded club. The faux horns and a chorus that is hard to shake, set it as the high point of the album.
It’s not all punch and glitter for Porches though, with Country showing the vulnerability of Maine’s vocal during a tune that is stripped back to its bare essentials. Clocking in at just under two minutes, the brief moment of introspection confirms that Maine is not adverse to the less is more ethos. Swimmer and Understanding are short vignettes that offer little to The House overall, but don’t detract too much from the flow.
Porches are growing slowly with each record. The House doesn’t have the intent focus on stellar choruses like its predecessor, but it is a record that time is sure to prove a grower due to it being greater than the sum of its parts.
CHRIS HAVERCROFT
