“This Party” is the first song Houndmouth has released since songwriter/vocalist/keyboardist Katie Toupin left the band, and is the first single for the band’s untitled upcoming album. The song is fairly nondescript, though it’s a bit of a departure from the rootsy sound of the band’s first two albums, From the Hills Below the City and Little Neon Limelight. But mostly I chose it because after the song received a very cold welcome on social media, the band released this video hyping the song in response:
One of the things that I loved so much about the band’s second album was their commitment to the theme. It was a more electric, late night album, reflected in it’s title and across the lyrics, like in “Sedona” when it’s a “Saturday night kind of pink.” On the subsequent tour, the band dressed like the glam rockers the songs demanded they did. I even got a setlist at a show that was written in a wiry font held down by bright pink tape. This video doesn’t make the song any more enjoyable, but it does let us know that they’re going to commit to this ’80s feeling the first single gives off.