"The House: Remixes", Lo Key EP review

Remember "The House"? Remember how bad it was? If The House was that bad, then this remix of the original extended play must also be bad, right? Not quite. Somehow, Lo Kevelli managed to make the whole EP, well, not sound like shit. This extended play came out in 2006, which is only a year after The House was originally released. I don't know the history of this piece, but it can be assumed that it was originally released as a free download at first. I'm also not sure how well-received it was, but I can assume that it went pretty well keeping in mind that The House was a very popular release in Loke's career.

Graphics:
The cover art is cool, but not great. If it was on a shelf in a music store, which it isn't and never will be, it would have caught my eye. There are a few different versions of the cover art, but they mostly look the same. It's Loke silhouetted against a dark green cloudy sky, with his name written stylistically above him and the album title beneath him. You'll see it below. Track listing is on the back, and there are some pictures of a very pale baby with soulless eyes looking out. The graphics are so minimalist that the release date or company name aren't on the CD anywhere, so I had to go to Loke's webstore for the deets. The cover art is a slip with an Infectshop advert on the back. The art for the CD is different too, it's a green demon-looking creature set against darkeness with its mouth open. Nothing in the CD rest.

Content:
Like I said, this remix album is a huge step-up from the original extended play. I'm not sure how it's this much better than the original, but the production value is much higher. Since the style of production is much improved, it makes the lyricism sound a lot less monotonous and is a drastic help for the EP. The sound is much more eerie and melodic, which fits the EP a lot more than the sound of the original release. Here the tracks are very solid, and while the lyrical message has not changed at all, it is at least now pleasing to listen to. The House: Remixes is not incredible, but it's a hell of a lot better than the original release. You don't need this extended play at all, but I will tell you that I'd recommend it over the original any day. If you want a solid remix album, here is a good place to find one. If you're the average listener, though, 12.99 is still a lot to pay for five songs. So this is probably more for the collectors than anything else, unless you buy it digitally.

"The House: Remixes" by Lo Key gets a: 3/5!

Strong points:
- Production has really ramped up since the original
- Graphics are pretty neat

Weak points:
- While this release is much better than the original extended play, it doesn't stand out in Lo Key's career and can thus be deemed a mediocre release in the grand scheme of things.

I think this is the original cover art for this EP

This is the version that is up on display on Loke's website, but the cover art below is what's actually on the CD.

This is the actual cover art. Notice the added eyes, lack of a mask, and marginally cleaner lettering.