Over the years, Led Zeppelin has been regarded as one of the most recognized bands globally. Despite their discography spanning from 1969 to 1892, they remain influential figures in the music world today. We consider them as a band ahead of their time four highly virtuosic musicians who stepped outside the box to do something completely different.
Today, we review “Houses Of The Holy,” one of their finest albums, where the band adopted a different sound, veering away from their blues influences. Produced by Jimmy Page and mixed by Eddie Kramer, one of the prominent producers in the ’70s who also worked with bands like Kiss.
What can we listen to?
We hear a band tired of experimenting with the blues, opening the door to new horizons, which they achieved magnificently. One can observe the band’s change even visually, as for the first time, the album cover appears clean, without text, designed by one of the most prominent art collectives in rock visuals, Hipgnosis, who also collaborated with bands like Pink Floyd, Wings, among others.
Notable are Jimmy Page’s acoustic guitars, present in most tracks, delivering unconventional figures and chords. Additionally, John Paul Jones‘ brilliance is present throughout the album, especially in the basslines, synthesizers, organs, among other instruments.
It’s interesting how Led Zeppelin embraced new rhythms, such as the clear funk influence in “The Crunge” or the pleasant Reggae rhythm in “D’yer Mak’er.”
La influencia progresiva de "No Quarter"
For our taste, ‘No Quarter’ steals the show on this album. It presents a structure completely different from the rest, including a slightly more saturated guitar distortion. The synthesizers create an ambient and progressive feel, and the song’s longer duration keeps the listener engaged.
We firmly believe that this song paved the way for the band to experiment with new sounds in their subsequent albums. Robert Plant (vocalist) also plays a significant role in this composition, making extraordinary use of reverb and delay in production.
Speaking in general about the album, John Bonham’s contribution on drums is impeccable, offering rhythms beyond the conventional for that time, as he does in ‘The Ocean,’ playing with non-traditional time signatures in ’70s Rock, which was mostly limited to basic 4/4 beats. Bonham does it so well, exploring the various possibilities that different beats offer while maintaining perfect timing. Remember, at that time, quantization didn’t exist, so everything heard on the album was recorded as is, without significant editing.
Jimmy Page at his best
It’s no wonder Page is considered one of the greatest guitarists of all time. His influence on ‘Houses Of The Holy’ is thoroughly evident, presenting incredibly crafted solos, riffs, clean and acoustic guitars, and a rich array of meticulously studied chords and figures.
“Houses Of The Holy” invited the rock world to experiment and incorporate new elements into bands’ sounds that didn’t necessarily originate from the blues. Upon its release, it received mixed reviews, but over the years, it has become one of the most acclaimed rock albums, even earning a place in Rolling Stone‘s rankings.
Without a doubt, Led Zeppelin was a band ahead of its time due to the profound creativity of each of its members.
