Houndmouth Breaks 5 Year Dry Spell With “Tiger Blood” and “Lordy”
Single Review★ Kenzie Gay ★ @kenzwrites ★ 3 Minutes
It’s been nearly five years since one of my favorite albums of all time was released in the November of 2021 - Good For You by the underdogs of Midwestern Folk Rock, Houndmouth. Originally formed in New Albany, Indiana with a founding lineup composed of Matt Myers (guitar, vox) and Katie Toupin (keys, vox), the group has seen many eras with its most prominent being the lineup of Myers, Toupin, Shane Cody (drums), and Zak Appleby (bass).
Today, however, the lineup is made up of Myers and keyboardist Caleb Hickman with a rotation of other studio musicians meanwhile in a live setting, bassist Zac Anderson frequently joins them. On April 22nd, the band ended its 5 years free of new music with a double single to promote their upcoming album, Lordy.
Please note that former drummer Shane Cody is also credited as a songwriter but not a percussionist on the new music
Houndmouth on tour 2025/26 via Tommy MooreTiger Blood is one of the two new singles and it’s one I particularly recognized from the plethora of Houndmouth shows I’ve attended over the last few years. Matt has been testing several of the new songs live for quite some time and to hear it in its full, recorded glory is truly something special.
The song revolves around melancholic-edged themes of nostalgia, youth, and releasing inhibitions which can be concluded from the lines “I’ve been wondering where my mind went. I think it’s down between the earth and the pavement and before you get to steal it: remember heartbreaks, honey, they don’t cost a thing” and “Friday nights come, oh, we’re made of veins of ice and tiger blood. Come on, let it out now. I hope you remember that we’re all childlike and careless blowing dandelions heads off”. Tiger blood is historically used as symbolism for larger-than-life strength and confidence, which again nods to the cocky, “nothing can touch me” mentality than many people hold in their own youth.
Apart from Tiger Blood, Houndmouth also released the upcoming album’s title track: Lordy. In contrast to Tiger Blood, Lordy is softer on a sonic basis though it holds a more vindictive edge lyrically. Many fans on Reddit have analyzed the song and its intentions, theorizing that the song is a dig at former drummer Shane Cody whom exited the band on very tense conditions in late 2023.
Read the full Reddit thread here.
Lordy leans deeper into a Joni Mitchell/Cat Stevens approach at folk with whiney vocals and more of a stripped back style with instrumentals. It’s raw and doesn’t veer away from that at any point. As I said, it’s a vengeful diss track of sorts where Myers lays his heart out and says exactly what he thinks of whomever the song is geared towards. This is especially obvious in the lines “Through all the years, come to know you. Turns out the walls were too tall. Best stuck to judging, boy, it looks so damn good on you. Runs in your blood and sucks all of the fun out of it”, “Did you get the mower that I left in the shed for you? Or should I meet you out back? Knuckles or gloves, it's whatever you want. There's some choices, but you stuck to guns”, and “I can't supply you now with all my idеas so have some opinions of your own. You act like your poor, kid, sitting on fortunes and all that your grand mommy mined”.
Tiger Blood and Lordy are just the tip of the iceberg and more will be revealed this Summer when the full album is released. Produced by Brad Cook, Lordy is gearing up to be Houndmouth’s most influential album yet - one that could put them on maps outside of the Midwest and Pacific Northwest.
Lordy, the fifth studio album by Houndmouth, will be available to stream everywhere you find music on July 10th, 2026 via Dualtone Music Group. The band has a select number of dates this coming Summer, too. Tickets and pre-save links are available below.
