Review Summary: A brilliant exploration that’s secretly one of Zeppelin’s best albums
If Led Zeppelin had any trepidation in following up the monolithic IV, they sure didn’t show it on Houses of the Holy. This album feels like a celebration of everything the band stood for, the first to break the numeral title convention as “The Song Remains the Same” and “The Ocean” bookend the album with bright, unbridled enthusiasm. The former’s sped up vocal borders on a little too squeaky but it pairs well with the guitar fanfare and breezy rhythm while the latter exudes relentless joy between its gleeful stomp and interspersed sing-song vocals.
The songs in between do well in maintaining this pleasant vibe, conjuring thoughts of adventurous sunny days. “The Rain Song” is an immediate contrast to “The Song Remains the Same” with a methodical pace, gentle vocals, and subtle instrumentation that scores a gorgeous spring awakening. “Over the Hills and Far Away” follows it up with one of the band’s most life-affirming folk tracks and “Dancing Days” somehow makes its abrasive riff set sound happy-go-lucky.
It’s also neat to see the band venture into some genres they hadn’t before, setting the stage for further exploration after seemingly reached a full culmination on IV. I’ve always had conflicted feelings on “The Crunge;” the off-time bass groove is a funky exercise to build on but the vocals feel a little too vapid to really tap into that James Brown spirit they were going for. “D’yer Ma’ker” fares better with its raggae influence making for a neat bass groove and sweeter vocals, though it’s almost humorous to see Bonham’s drums going so hard on such a laid back tune.
However, the album’s most dramatic outlier comes as “No Quarter” suddenly freezes all the sunshine and plunges into bitter cold. Everything works in perfect symmetry as the keyboards provide a bleak overcast that is complemented by the filtered vocals, the drums set a creeping trudge, and the guitars shape the dynamics whether pulling back for the verses or swelling up the fuzz intensities. This is the sort of song that spawned entire sub-genres, it’s certainly easy to see why groups like Tool and Crowbar gravitated to it so much.
Overall, Houses of the Holy is a brilliant exploration that’s secretly one of Zeppelin’s best albums. It feels like the band is really basking in their “rock god” status here, putting forth easygoing songs with enough experiments and musicianship to keep from looking too lazy or full of hubris. Not every experiment is a staple but a good bulk of these songs can be counted amongst their absolute best. Consider this one for your summer rotation if you haven’t gotten it in yet.
