Darkhaus - After The Heartache

Man, whoever it was that first thought of putting a beat behind being sad would have been rolling in tear-stained stacks of cash had copyright lawyers existed back then. Music without emotion is a lot like a dog wearing a hat, after all – not entirely pointless, but definitely funny to think about. Other than the dog part, that particular aspect is especially true of rock and roll. Unless putting clothes on dogs makes you inexplicably sad, in which case I’ve got no idea what could possibly make you happy.  

Tangential to the idea of tragedy and music colliding – while this song likely won’t inspire outright fits of sobbing, our band in the spotlight for Rock Song of the Week are no longer as of 2017. While they were still active, however, Darkhaus (which I’ve discovered, after months of costly research, is German for “Dark House”, if you can believe that) were an excellent band and no strangers to the fine bedfellows that music and emotion made. It’s more likely to be their hometown that might surprise you – Livingston, Scotland was their base of operations and their intercontinental hub, which given the wide array of nationalities the band has had across the years, you’d think they’d pick somewhere a bit more exciting as a mid-point. Maybe they’re all fans of the Almond Valley Heritage Centre. Yes, I did actually have to look that one up. 

To the music! Presented to you here and now in all its crunchy-riffed, anthemic-chorused glory, After The Heartache is an almost supernaturally catchy track from a band who knew their onions when it comes to heavy metal. It might not make you weep, but I’ll bet large to small that it’ll make your day. Plug in and play loud!