A Teddy, a Gabey, a Davey, a Stevey, and another Davey! They like to "Chow Up" on "Sandwiches" and drink "Purpsi," which is a new kind of Pepsi, and it is basically Purple Pepsi! Thanks!
"Chow Up," "Sandwiches," and "Purpsi" are trademarks of Houseguest Foods, Inc., a divison of Consolidated Houseguest Companies.
Influences
Alan Parsons Project, Alize, Bad Religion, Beat Happening, the Beatles, Frank Black, William Blake, William Bragg, Buzzcocks, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Crosby Stills Nash & Young, Devo, Dire Straits, Electrical Light Orchestra, Emerson Lake and Palmer, The Feelies, Fleetwood Mac, Peter Gabriel, Galaxie 500, Genesis, Guided By Voices, Hall and Oates, Richard Hell, Paris Hilton, Houseguest, Led Zeppelin, Magnetic Fields, the Minutemen, Claude Monet, the Moody Blues, Pavement, Thomas Petty, the Police, Queen, Jonathan Richman, Rush, the Shins, Shudder to Think, Silver Jews, the Smiths, Steely Dan, Superchunk, Matthew Sweet, Talking Heads, Television, Alfred Tennyson, Thin Lizzy, William Wordsworth, XTC, Yes, Neil Young, Warren Zevon, etc etc
Houseguest is a band from Akron, Ohio. Houseguest plays music in the Neo-Mannerist fashion. The members of Houseguest are BFFs, and total bad boys! They like to hang out at the mall, drink Dr. Pepper, eat at Chipotle, and shop at Hollister! They also like to take their Hollister shirts off when they get excited, which makes the girls flip out!
Houseguest has a bad-ass record out on Audio Eagle/Fat Possum Records, and is working on a new one for Spring 2008.
Keep a lookout for these cuties!
LET"S SEE WHAT ALL THE BITCHES SAYING ABOUT HOUSEGUEST:
Houseguest’s Congratulations
"A Magic Eye for the Ears"
"(Houseguest's) songs progress in sporadic fashion with twists, turns, and vocal breakdowns that appear in bizarre places. Somehow it all comes together and works really well for the band; you could think of it as a Magic Eye for the ears."
-I Guess I'm Floating
"Chronically Catchy"
"Remember when Guided by Voices were really good? Well, forget that for a sec because Houseguest are really good right now. Like GbV, they’re chronically catchy, and they have a similarly frayed set of production values, but they don’t leave you with that lingering sense that you’re a sucker and will listen to anything.
"
-Michael Brodeur, the Boston Phoenix
“Staggeringly Beautiful”
“Houseguest is Akron, Ohio’s band du jour. Deservedly so. But what adds weight to the hope that they will get over that local hump is their journey so far. In their five years together they have already lost a close friend, busted up the band and reformed, and grabbed a Northeast Ohio super-group label of sorts for their roster’s pedigree.
“Now, they have overcome the novelty of their live show reputation (where the band and half the audience often seem to end up on stage and in various stages of undress) and released their first full-length release on the Audio Eagle label, founded by old friend and Black Key Patrick Carney. And while the abandon of their stage presence is something to behold, what they are capable of committing in the studio is staggeringly beautiful, skewed pop. 8 out of 10.”
-Adam Besenyodi, Pop Matters.com
“The Best”
“Houseguest is simply the best pop band in the country.”
-McSweeney’s
“Perfect Pop Rock”
“Remember the recent film You, Me and Dupree? You probably didn't see it, but you recall its premise—Owen Wilson's zany bachelor moves in with newlyweds Matt Dillon and Kate Hudson, and antics ensue. He taught us all something about ourselves, but that Dupree sure overstayed his welcome!
“Akron's Houseguest, on the other hand, is the kind of visitor you can receive into your home without reservations. High Strangeness will quickly become a permanent resident, filling your quarters with music that's relentlessly catchy and smart, tight but jittery, muscle toned but not bulging.
“In addition to wowing you with perfect pop rock, you'll find it making its bed (and yours), taking out the trash and preparing delicious feasts.
“In short, this album offers all the life-changing potential of a visit from Dupree without the full-frontal nudity. Grade: A”
-Chris DeVille, Columbus Alive
“Perfectly Crafted Pop”
“I've caught a lot of things in the past year: a couple colds, an elbow in the ribcage, a run of bad luck with two flat tires in two weeks, my hands in the cookie jar, grief from my mums for not returning all of her phone calls in a timely manner, but none of these things are as catchy as this new CD, High Strangeness, by Houseguest.
“So, how did a modest band of misfits from Akron, OH, manage to make the catchiest guitar pop record my ears have heard in years? Well, it starts with the singing of Ted Mallison, whose crooning make him sound somewhere between Bob Mould and Morrissey. Add in the rhythm section of bassist Gabe Schray and drummer Steve Clements, who adeptly steer the band through endless twists and turns. Finally it's topped off by the double guitar acrobatics of Dave Rich and David Whited, and you have Houseguest's recipe for perfectly crafted pop. 8 out of 10.”
-Bill Lipold, I Rock Cleveland
“Lush and Well-Crafted”
“In its first release on a major record label, Houseguest proves that it is here to stay. Released on Audio Eagle Records, High Strangeness is a refreshing album full of head boppers and catchy tunes. Houseguest, five Akronites who have been staple members of many local outfits for several years, manages to come together and craft something classic.
“…a lush and well-crafted album.”
-Curt Brown, the Buchtelite
“Understated Intelligence”
“There’s a fine line between sounding intelligent and sounding grating, particularly when lyrics are involved, but Houseguest soft-peddle the jokes and, what’s perhaps more important, the irony. The most obvious precedent is Kurt Wagner’s work in Lambchop – all bemusement and understated intelligence.”
-Tom Zimpleman, Dusted Magazine
“Immediate, Exciting, and Catchy”
“In an age where most bands are practically dripping with self-importance, Houseguest’s lighthearted attitude is a welcome relief. It also helps that the band’s music is so Goddamn immediate, exciting, and catchy that it wouldn’t even matter if they didn’t have a sense of humor.”
-Daniel Kirschenbaum, U Weekly
“An Off-Kilter Grace”
“Houseguest’s pop shuffles and sashays with an off-kilter grace, like a defiant drunk finding his way home. Guitars shamble and rumble with repressed power, rising in hooky swells that call to mind Guided by Voices, Beat Happening, and the Feelies.”
-Chris Parker, Cleveland Scene
“Smart, Fun Music”
“Houseguest is a bunch of smart guys making smart, fun music.”
-Malcolm X. Abram, the Akron Beacon Journal
“Worthy of a Second Glance”
“Houseguest may have already been touted on this here site (I'm not completely sure) but regardless, their jittery, bookworm, brand of pop is worthy of a second glance. Who knew the Rubber City was capable of spawning an infectious hybrid of the Feelies, XTC, David Bowie, Orange Juice and the Wedding Present? Anglophiles unite, for this is simply the finest British band that's from no where near Britain.”
-the Cyclotron
“Contrivance at it's Worst”
“Even if this were totally original, it would still suck. The playing is almost too confident.; it's pretty clear that these guys know how to play their instruments; they play them so balls-out that it eventually becomes infuriating.”
The HouseGuests and/or any combination of members there-of, is/are the only band(s) I have ever seen play on Sunday night at the matinee. But you still weren't as good as Snake Mountain.
I just saw some videos from your Musica show, great stuff. Can't wait to see you guys one of these days. I'll probably go to a Cleveland or Akron show sometime.
Hello please tell us what you think of our new song "I have 99 Problems, but my Splitter isn't One of Them" and give some of your feedback good or bad. Thanks A couple of big Dane Cook Fans (Miss Digital)
it was so gloomy this morn, i needed happy-time music, put me on some houseguest and the sun came out! amazing! gracias, ghents :) ps- come break pinatas with drum sticks or other sticks april 11th..
I had this dream that you guys were playing a show driving around in the first car I owned. It was a little roomer than I remember it. Anyway, Gabe Fulvimar chasing us, and he kept trying to eat the car. I think it was made of candy? He kept biting the tail-pipe and was talking in a weird helium voice.
