Welcome to one of my new favourite bands…
There’s a cool Garage Rock thrust and abandon to opening track ‘Once Upon A Time’ and definitely some Blues in there but mainly a real Retro ‘No holds barred’ Rock and Roll ethic that just goes for it. I love it,the guitars, the vocals, everything. Not to mention the great groove they’ve got going on… Man and that twin guitar to close, just magic!
What do you call eight tracks these days? An album? A mini album? Does it depend on the length of the songs? Who knows? All I know is that the eight tracks here are indispensable. I simply love ‘Fight My Own’ that comes next and those vintage guitar sounds as the vocal rides the riff hit the mark. This is like unwrapping a classic album from the late 70’s that you’ve never heard before and loving it even more, mystified that its slipped through the cracks.
‘Creators of Destruction’ is simply wonderful a track from the days when Metal and Hard Rock met in the middle and you couldn’t see the seam, there’s a timeless feel and even a touch of Free about it.
Ominously the next track is entitled ‘Highway’ a great mid-tempo dusty road rocker that has a great edge and proto-Metal moments that really hit the spot.
‘Faster Than Light’ comes in with scorching guitars and a ‘hits the spot’ riff that opens out to a light and airy verse and tales of days of old,mighty screams and wailing guitars. This is the sort of music I love and whilst there’s no direct comparison as each of the bands have their own angles I’d rate this up with Kyng, Crobot and Black Tide’s first.
The album does end with lots of threads dangling though and lots of possibility…
The odd man out is ‘Financial Revolution – Geheel’ a slow and lilting instrumental that bursts into life after one and a half minutes with vocals only kicking in after two. It then rides a bludgeoning riff to the end. ‘Deathstalkers’ that follows seems like it is back to basics and all about the riffs and soaring melody-packed vocals that contrast nicely. It’s a little quirky and pretty cool but has a modern edge that doesn’t work as much for me as some of the other tracks here.
Closing track ‘Feed the Fire’ though is simply wonderful and builds slowly with a simple guitar pattern and drums before the vocals drop in and then the song sparks to life. It’s an instant classic and starts out far more say ‘Soundgarden’ than it is ‘Sabbath’. And when it finally cranks, it cranks! You’re on the receiving end of a real 6 minute plus epic that ends more ‘Sabbath’ than ‘Soundgarden’!
This one I like a lot.
8/10