Imagine a UK band with all the vim and vigor of a US band like Rival Sons and the intimacy and emotion of the lighter moments of early Black Crowes and Free and you have a very lazy and rather perfunctory overview of The Temperance Movement’s sound. That of course is to do the British five-piece a disservice as with opener ‘Caught in the Middle’ they prove they have their own unique spin on making the best sounds of 70’s rock modern and essential again.
As the bio reads “For The Temperance Movement, the last few years have been the most turbulent and tumultuous of their career.” and that is no understatement though as it goes on “… what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” and that is certainly the case here with this their third full-length outing. ‘A Deeper Cut’ brings together the sounds of The Faces and Led Zeppelin, Free and The Rolling Stones and if that sounds familiar think for a moment that Mr. Jagger himself brought the band onto the tour of his own band through 2014 and 2015 both in the UK and the US.
So with both previous albums hitting the UK Top 20 and accolades aplenty to go with them album number three sees the band effectively coming to terms with both founding guitarist Luke Potashnick quitting the band before second-up album ‘White Bear’ was released, and drummer Damon Wilson following him in 2016.
As we said some things just make you stronger and the addition of guitarist Matt White and drummer Simon Lea seems to have given the band a real boost together with singer Phil Campbell “finally getting a grip on his own personal demons”. Then of course comes success and the choices that any band need to make – either stick to your guns (and what got you there in the first place) or bring in outsiders and compromise your sound to appeal to a wider audience. I’m glad to say that the band chose the former and it shows on album number three.
“The plan was to make a rock’n’roll record with heart and soul,” says Phil. “That’s what we do. It was that simple.” and thank God they chose that path as this really is something special from the hard hitting opener all the way to the delicate and soulful closer ‘The Wonders We’ve Seen’.
In between what you get is a real rock record full of light and shade, integrity and emotion and bristling with energy and honesty. Take the huge groove of opener ‘Caught In The Middle’ and just run with it – here there is something for everyone. If you love it little more laid back but still urgent then next up ‘Built-In Forgetter’ hits the spot with a Black Crowes-like frenetic verse and silky chorus cut through with some nice licks. Then there’s the soulful stomp of ‘Love and Devotion’ and a slowly simmering ‘A Deeper Cut’ before the real rock’n’roll of ‘Backwater Zoo’.
Deeper in ‘Another Spiral’ adds gentle reflection before it gives way to the similarly delicate meander of ‘Beast Nation’ which in turn leads to the sweet strains of ‘The Way It Was and the Way It Is Now’ which adds a wailing guitar and an ear-worm of a refrain.
A rather fine album runs out just as strongly as it began with the wonderful and understated soulful blues rock of the Free-like ‘Higher Than the Sun’ and the breezy and melancholic southern-tinged ballad ‘Children’ which is a real highlight here for me. We close with the optimistic ‘There’s Still Time’ before the delicate and uplifting closer ‘The Wonders We’ve Seen’ which fittingly seems to sum up all I love about this great band.
If you’re looking for bombast and buster you wont find it here – this is an album for those that love all the colours and emotions that rock can muster, it’s and album to love and cherish, it’s an album that is just as much to feel as it is to hear: songs that really mean something and stay with you. As the band say in the press release: “The past is important. But the future is everything”. Let’s hope that this is the one that opens up your ears and hearts to The Temperance Movement.