Album Review: Hokka - Via Miseria

There are two strains of goth-related rock/metal; the kind that was embodied by H.I.M., and the kind that comes with the cliche baritone delivery. Personally, I have never been able to get much into that more traditional style of goth, because too often it sounds like an affect being put on because it is expected. Those baritone deliveries come across like a costume, and being able to see the edges of the prosthetic make it difficult for the emotion to come through. Goth is about darkness and pain, and yet the way it is often delivered is more like wearing day-glow paint under a black light and wondering why no one thinks you're scary.

Hokka is taking the other path, with a sound that is no less centered on anguish, but doesn't bother trying to equate lower frequencies with lower moods. This also isn't H.I.M, per se, as that velvety haze is not present here either. Hokka is doing something different, wherein they are bringing goth together with emo and melodic rock, giving us a record that would not have been out of place as the soundtrack to the viral dance scene from "Wednesday". This is Addams Family dark, not razorblades on skin dark. That difference is important.

With songs called "In The Darkness", "Death By Cupid's Arrow", and "Murder Ballad", it's obvious we are not dealing with music that is going to make us feel good. That's true, but by embracing a sound that has a bit more energy and sizzle to it, Hokka is reaching out from those shadows to ask us the question from the best version of Batman: "Have you ever danced with the devil by the pale moonlight?"

In a way, this record reminds me of "The Black Parade", if that one was filtered through a sieve that took the sharper edges off of it. MCR went on tangents, threw in more anger and theatricality, but the core sound underneath that is similar to what Hokka is offering us here. Hokka is more singularly focused, and their stories of hurt are more internal, but the expression stems from the same place.

I would also compare this to the record Cemetery Skyline put out, which also blended goth and melody to great effect. That album had a bit more of the traditional goth baritone, which might have made it more acceptable to the old-guard than this record will be, but it also means Hokka is able to feel less like an intentional piece of nostalgia. Hokka's music sounds fresher, which might give us the impression it's more honest, because it's hard to talk purely in the past and have it make the same impact as something new.

Across these songs, Hokka shows a knack for delivering soaring melodies that are more memorable and engaging than a lot of goth croaking tends to be. They aren't content to set an atmosphere and cloak themselves in it, they want to give us the anthems for our pity parties, which they do.

I don't know if the goth and emo renaissance has passed us by, but whether the numbers are declining or not, Hokka has given us a record that would be a highlight regardless.