From the bombastic opening salvo of lead single ‘I Don’t Need Your Loving’, it is apparent that Inglorious are a rock group of a thoroughly vintage nature. Having formed in 2014 and hailing from Blighty Inglorious are rockers with a self-confessed love of 70’s rock. Continue reading
With nearly 50 years on the clock and a currently ongoing tour entitled ‘The Long Goodbye Tour’, it is looking like Deep Purple will finally be calling time on their long and illustrious career. Alongside this, they have released their twentieth album InFinite (earMUSIC), made like its predecessor Now What?! in Nashville under the watchful eye of iconic producer Bob Ezrin (who has also worked with Alice Cooper, Pink Floyd, Aerosmith and Kiss). If this does end up being their last record, will it be a swansong befitting their stature?Continue reading
Midweek gigs can often be underfilled and lacking any spark from the audience. No such trouble at the Camden Underworld for Big Business and Whores., where a night of punk-infused metal overcame any midweek lethargy to get the blood pumping and ear bleeding.Continue reading
Predictability is underrated. Eighth album in, eighth time that Canadian power-trio Danko Jones have pulled out of the bag (sic) a selection of energetic garage-tinged Hard Rocking songs with swagger and enthusiasm. This time around it is a Wild Cat (AFM) that has been let out, and while there are no surprises, hell, (this) ain’t a bad place to be.Continue reading
Gütersloh may be a long way from the Louisiana swamps, but German two-piece The Picturebooks sound like they were born and raised on nothing but the Blues along the Mississippi. The band’s sophomore release and début for Another Century, Home Is A Heartache, is raw Blues Rock stripped to the bare essentials; a fuzzy guitar, stomping drums, and soulful vocals.Continue reading
Formed in 2011, Blues Pills are blues based rockers with a love of all things psychedelic. They released their eponymous début album in 2014, and it is an impressive one at that. It’s mix of 60s blues and psychedelia with a 70s rock outlook complete with raw and authentic production works very well. They are back with their second album Lady in Gold (Nuclear Blast) and producer Don Alsterberg has returned to man the desk. Marijke Koger-Dunham has also been lured back to create another psychedelic, far out album sleeve.
It continues the bluesy psychedelic vibe of their début but it has been beefed up by bigger, more polished production. It is melodious and very catchy rock, more multi layered but with the same Hendrix inspired 60s and 70s spirit running through it’s veins. The title track is a gem, with an infectious melody and a thrumming piano backbone – a song about a female grim reaper has no right being this upbeat! ‘Little Boy Preacher’ and ‘Bad Talkers’ are some more great examples of this record’s knack for multi-layered earworms. They are delightfully snappy foot tappers, with Elin Larsson’s vocals supported by choir like backing singers throughout. Their most adventurous step and the biggest surprise is the heartfelt ‘I Felt a Change’, a beautifully mournful track led solely by mellow keys and emotive strings.
The second half of the record holds true to the heady blues and dirty early ZZ Top-esque groove of their debut, with the trio ‘You Gotta Try’, ‘Won’t Go Back’ and ‘Rejection’ snugly fitting in side by side. The latter song is the rockiest moment here, an energetic track propelled forward by the thrusting guitar work of Dorrian Sorriaux. Similar to their self titled début, Lady in Gold has a cover version. The first one was Chubby Checker’s ‘Gypsy’, this time Tony Joe White’s ‘Elements and Things’ gets the Blues Pills treatment. It is a rocker, which ultimately stays faithful to the original, ending with an oddly captivating organ blast.
8.0/10
THOMAS THROWER
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Super Bowl 50. A milestone. An epic event. Set in the San Francisco area, Super Bowl 50 promised to be a once in a lifetime experience. The huddled masses of the Bay Area wanted, no.. needed, a halftime show of equally epic proportions. A young man from Ohio had a brilliant idea. Why not allow a local band to perform at the halftime show? Jason Long started a petition to get Metallica, a local band with a good 35-year history in San Francisco, to play the Super Bowl. Metallica songs are anthems played in sporting stadiums around the country anyway. Jason’s petition quickly caught the eye of media outlets everywhere including Metallica and the NFL. But alas, after 63,925 signatures it was not to be. Much to the chagrin of everyone, Coldplay was chosen. But never fear. Metallica was so well chuffed by the idea, they rented out AT &T Park in downtown San Francisco and created CBS Radio’s The Night Before. Fans rejoiced! A full Metallica show with no time constraints or auto-tune.Continue reading
Motörhead © Kevin Estrada / kevinestrada.com
The music world lost one of its true great baddasses when Ian Frasier Kilmister, known to scores of fans by his eponymous nickname Lemmy of Motörhead, passed away suddenly from cancer on December 28th. The shockwave felt with from announcement of his death at age 70 on social media, and then confirmation by the band was heartbreaking for many who followed his career of nearly five decades. Although he has struggled with health issues the last few years, Motörhead was last seen on tour in Europe three weeks earlier, supporting their recent new album Bad Magic (UDR). One of the most enduring sounds in rock music, the obscenely loud volume of the bands’ live backline, unmatched by any band in any genre, will never be heard again. Continue reading
There’s decent pedigree within the ranks of New England quartet Kind, and the filthy, leaden groove attacking the knees from the beginning of debut album Rocket Science (Ripple) bears that out. Yes, it’s Stoner but, initially at least, there’s more life in the plunking of the bass, the reverb of the whole sound and Craig Riggs’ vocal roar which, far from the emphysemic gargle usually expected, has a depth and resonance befitting the growling riffs and sedentary pace.
An atmospheric production further lifts the sound throughout, giving the lazy Blues-Rock of ‘Rabbit Astronaut’ a mystique which enhances both the smokiness of the riff and the frenetic lead. The tempo of ‘Fast Number One’ is aptly ramped up to near-NWOBHM, levels yet Tom Corino’s mellow bass notes and the subtle riff allow the track to breathe through Matthew Couto’s precise stickwork. Riggs’ delivery is a little ‘pubby’, however, manfully handling some pretty clunky lyrics.
Not unexpectedly there is a stodginess to certain elements. It takes a gradual quickening and more of Darryl Shepard’s howling leadplay to inject life into the somewhat dull and uninspired meanderings of the overlong ‘Hordeolum’: the powering riff and Psychedelic vocal gracing the last quarter showing what might have been. The grinding, dirty Funk of ‘Pastrami Blaster’, meanwhile, is reined by a sluggish torpor which prevents that hot undercurrent from exploding; again only fired to partial grandeur by more electrifying work from Shepard. When things do fire, however, they are both potent and infectious; the nasty, driving power of the standout ‘Grogan’ again given room to flex by a strong yet dextrous riff.
The fuzzed, mellow tones of closer ‘The Angry Undertaker’ are slightly affected by Riggs’ balladic croon which, although wondrous by the genre’s standards, still shows limits on occasion. It’s here, however, where the creativity and fire in the belly is really displayed – the brutal, barrelling riffs and subsequent screams duelling with steadily building and intricate, cosmic leads – and where the uncertainty of Kind’s goodie bag is finally dispelled. Despite brief flashes of the usual failings there is much to be positive about here.
7.0/10
PAUL QUINN
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The Winery Dogs self-titled debut album arrived back in 2013 to little fanfare – it was (yet) another side project for the hardest working man in music, the ridiculously prolific Mike Portnoy. Partnering with bass guitar legend Billy Sheehan and Mr Big (amongst others) guitarist Richie Kotzen, it became the latest “supergroup” to attempt to charm us with their wares. Winery Dogs debut was nothing if not efficient and, at times occasionally inspired, hard rock with a blues edge and infectious sense of melody. This should have hardly been a surprise, given the extensive CVs of the main protagonists; what really did surprise was how easy and effortless this all was, suggesting that the artists had found a common bond and sense of purpose whilst working in the studio.
Suspicions that The Winery Dogs do indeed have “legs” is confirmed by the arrival of Hot Streak (earMUSIC) a second dose of Winery songcraft and it’s every bit as good as it predecessor: in fact, the broadening of its styles and the accomplishment of its execution means it surpasses the charms of the debut.
There is a 1980s rock sensibility running through much of Hot Streak but it’s probably most noticeable on the catchy ‘Captain Love’ which sounds like an outtake from Van Halen’s 5150 (Warner). It’s got a tongue in cheek set of lyrics and a lightweight, don’t-take-this-all-too-seriously mentality which probably means that it’s going to be something of a live favourite.
Hot Streak is not an 80s pastiche though. Much of the record sounds like it was conjured live in the studio with each musician taking the lead at various points and then bandmates joining in with chords, choruses and licks as needed, though nowhere near as clunky as my writing would suggest. Far from it; there is a lightness and warmth to how the songs come together and it’s all done, as you would expect, professionally and with several tonnes of gusto. The highlight of the album is the brilliant ‘Fire; which has a haunting melody, gossamer light chord progression and a real, instant sense of belonging and heart.
What these Dogs do is not fantastically original or groundbreaking but things don’t always need to be fantastically original or groundbreaking. Hot Streak is a step up from the debut, and a solid rock album played wonderfully well; it has charm and warmth and is very welcome round my way.
7.0/10
MAT DAVIES