Heartbreaking Bravery

Three years ago today, Heartbreaking Bravery launched with a very quick post spotlighting Audacity’s “Hole in the Sky” music video. A lot’s happened in the years that have followed. Trips out of the country, the creation of the A Year’s Worth of Memories series, an insane showcase thrown in a small town basement, the first and only interview to ever run on Heartbreaking Bravery, an extended relocation to New York City, and the 100-song A Step Forward compilation to mark the site’s 1000th post all ranked as highlights.

A lot of friends and memories have been made over the course of these past three years and Lost Boy ? qualify in both categories. In the spirit of the season, looking back, and looking ahead, this post will focus on two of the project’s Halloween-themed offerings. “Haunted House”, the most recent, finds the Davey Jones-led act in amusingly weary mid-tempo mode, navigating holiday-appropriate imagery to effectively underscore the sense of exhaustion that prods the song towards its perfect “I’m not mad, just disappointed” hook. It’s another perfect example of Jones blending a punchy pathos with an endearing whimsicality in an incredibly fascinating composition.

“Hallowen” a song from several years back that Jones put together with Boats recently resurfaced and falls in line with the handful of Lost Boy ? tracks that are driven by restless, reckless abandon. From the absolutely insane, quasi-nightmarish industrial ambient fever dream that ends “Halloween” to its deliriously spry opening, there’s not a moment of the track that isn’t ridiculously compelling. A snarky and irreverent narrative propels “Halloween” to stratospheric highs while Jones delivers the vocals with an excess of conviction and sends everything hurtling heavenward with a riff-happy chorus section.

Both songs are perfectly in keeping with the fiercely independent sensibilities and strong DIY ethos that Heartbreaking Bravery was built to celebrate. Whether it’s the “Happy Halloween!” that closes out the main section of the latter track or the distorted, modified vocal effects that pepper the former, Lost Boy ? also hit moments of uninhibited joy, showcasing a love for making art that exists well outside the confines of industry pressure. Exhilarating, heartening, inspired, inspiring, and timely, it’s hard to think of a better pair of songs to celebrate today.

Listen to “Haunted Hose” and “Halloween” below and keep an eye on this site for more updates on Lost Boy ?

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