Page 89 - Classic Rock (February 2020)

Beefheart rock’n’roll (Hearing My Part 1: Thunder Rise is a rollicking being true to your goals with edge. Veteran players – drummer elsewhere. It’s an exercise in sun-
Voice, Chicken Church), wonky dose of pure stoner psych, Eagle, Build It And They Will Come Gene Chrisman and keyboards baked mood in which Hackett
country rock (Xmas In The replete with spiralling acid-rock and Shoot For The Sun all fuelled wizard Bobby Wood – enhance plays his disciplined, varied part,
Jungle), glam jig, hellish music solos and a skittering rhythmic by endless self-belief and wide- the authentic mood and nail the another decent footnote in his
hall, reggae noir and bits where undertow, while the title track eyed defiance. Clearly driven to required sound. Tasty. recent renaissance.
the deranged violas sound like proclaims ‘the power of the mojo succeed, Electric Black’s first QQQQQQQQQQ QQQQQQQQQQ
early ELO on Motörhead’s worst hand’ before erupting into some effort holds plenty of promise Max Bell Nick Hasted
amphetamines. It’s never less of the cockiest-sounding proto- for the future.
than attention-grabbing, and metal riffs you’ll hear this QQQQQQQQQQ Djabe & Steve Stone Sour
contains real magic when millennium. The rest follows Essi Berelian Hackett Hello You Bastards:
hyperactive new wave rattler Do a similarly exhilarating path: Back To Sardinia ESOTERIC Live In Reno COOKING VINYL
Your Best recalls early REM, balls-out and traditional, but Marcus King Hungarian jazz reunion for Full on Sour mania.
Sherbet And Chilli drifts in on peppered with smart, quirky El Dorado ex-Genesis globetrotter. It seems a while
gentle country vibes or the Wild ideas, from Rainbow Ridge’s SNAKEFARM Steve Hackett ago that people
West themed, Neutral Milk snotty, Black Betty stomp to El Southern jukebox delights. has matched regarded Stone
Hotel-like Little Turtle Wars Hombre Dorado’s spiky, lysergic The 23-year old Peter Gabriel Sour as nothing
reaches its epic prairie battle strut. There’s no mistaking the guitar slinger for musical more than
climax, with the cowboys real deal, and Kamchatka make Marcus King curiosity, taking Corey Taylor’s distraction from
convinced they can ‘imagine it look easy. puts his band his guitar to intriguing places, Slipknot duty. Now, after six
ourselves invisible’. Unlike this QQQQQQQQQQ aside here for and lacing global sounds into his albums, the band have long
unignorable record. Dom Lawson a solo album produced by Black own albums. 2016’s Life Is since thrown off ‘Knot’s shadow,
QQQQQQQQQQ Keys-man Dan Auerbach in A Journey – The Sardinia Tapes establishing their own style.
Mark Beaumont Electric Black Nashville and it’s mostly a soul- was a productive summit with This is their first live release,
The Calm Before SELF-RELEASED drenched country cracker with jazz-world fusion veterans and it’s packed with fury,
Kamchatka Determined and dynamic pedal steel and fiddles to spare, Djabe, recorded in a Sardinian passion and venom. And it’s
Hoodoo Lightning debut. underpinning a set of songs that priest’s house. Relentless touring all delivered with a measured

KAMCHATKA MUSIC Solid, no-frills sound like someone’s favourite forced Hackett to forego the hard rock stance that brings to
Fuzzy blues fury from hard rock from record collection. The title track island sun for this sequel, adding mind AC/DC, Motörhead and
Sweden’s earthiest power trio. start to finish, is a hefty borrow from Neil his improvisations in Budapest. early Metallica.
This Swedish Electric Black’s Young’s Harvest Moon while This is very much a Djabe jazz- Taylor is in full cry on a set
trio’s debut is elsewhere King tips his Stetson rock album, all languid grooves that spans their career to date,
rambunctious a showcase for economical to Willie Nelson (Too Much and atmospheres, with Hackett while Josh Rand and Christian
brand of bluesy to-the-point songwriting. And Whiskey), Bobby Bland and as the featured, contrasting rock Martucci’s guitars kick up a
stoner rock will it’s been a long old slog this far if Amazing Rhythm Aces. The kid player. Lonely Castle is more storm. They roar through 16
never struggle to find an the lyrics to Homecoming are really is that old school but he about Aron Koos-Hutas’ songs, offering little respite and
audience. Their seventh studio anything to go by; almost every carries it off without too many Milesian trumpet, until Hackett plenty of manic action. Stone
album certainly doesn’t waste band has some sort of lonesome clichés, wearing his heart and intervenes with electric trills and Sour understand how to get
time trying to reinvent tales-of-the-road tune and influences on his sleeve until the a sudden saurian roar. Girl In The their fans moving and shaking,
Kamchatka’s ever-turning wheel, Electric Black have turned the formula gets a tad flimsy on Palau Wood, too, is transformed and as such this is
but there are precious few bands trials and tribulations of being Beautiful Stranger. The MKB by dramatic rock heaviness, like a fine representation of what
playing this stuff with anything a hard-working band into one of sound surfaces on the full-tilt (Don’t Fear) The Reaper dropped they do best.
like the same degree of ingenuity their best tracks with a distinctly boogie The Well and Say You into relaxed keyboard ripples. QQQQQQQQQQ
and verve. Opener Blues Science southern rock feel. It’s all about Will, jammy concoctions with He’s more understated Malcolm Dome

ROUND-UP: MELODIC ROCK By Dave Ling

King Of Hearts Passion

King Of Hearts MELODIC ROCK Passion FRONTIERS
Fronted by Tommy Formed from the ashes
Funderburk, whose voice of Night By Night by
has graced records by frontman Daniel Rossall,
Boston, Whitesnake, who now favours the
Toto and many more, name of Lion Ravarez,
KOH boast links to some of the biggest Passion aim to mix early 1990s classic hard
names in popular music, hence this album’s rock with the AOR of the previous decade.
cameos from Timothy B Schmit, Peter Cetera Besides playing most of the instruments
and Phil Collen. No surprise, then, of a pitch and producing, Rossall/Ravarez has just
somewhere between the Eagles and Chicago. the voice for the job, and the addition of
On first listen it’s just too laid back, but in a permanent line-up elevates Passion’s
time those riches will surely seduce. future prospects.
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Dirty Shirley Storm Force
Explosive stuff:
TNT’s Tony Harnell. Dirty Shirley FRONTIERS Storm Force ESCAPE MUSIC
Rendered lukewarm by Although Brighton
Lovekillers feat. The End Machine (the Rock have given up
Tony Harnell rollercoaster of highs and downs… seems belt of writers. With the likes of Don Dokken-less Dokken on new music,
to have put an end to their collaboration”). Hurricane, Higher Again and Now Or band)? Well, George guitarist Greg Fraser,
Lovekillers FRONTIERS Now Nashville-based, the singer pursues Never echoing the soaring airiness of Lynch is back again. The a co-founder of the
Tony Harnell hates a variety of different projects, but given TNT’s most commercial endeavours ex-Dokken guitarist hits the bullseye less Niagara Falls-based quintet, still feels the
having words put into that Harnell has been in the Norwegian it’s an enjoyable album. Harnell still and less these days, though by holding urge to create. Fraser is joined on this
his mouth. The former band five times before, anything can sings like a man half his age, apparently onto Croatian singer Dino Jelusick (Animal highly impressive opening statement by
TNT singer recently happen in the crazy world of TNT. deriving pleasure through Drive, Trans-Siberian Orchestra) and a rather fine singer named Patrick
nixed claims that he Which brings us to Lovekillers. Its 11 reconnection with his past, rather upping the ante with a follow-up album, Gagliardi. Together in Storm Force they
would never again work with that band’s songs see Harnell collude with Frontiers than pinning any career hopes upon the promising Dirty Shirley might just dig forge a rousing, melodic sound that’s likely
Ronnie LeTekrø, a suggestion repeated Records’ in-house tunesmith/producer its fortunes. Don out of a pretty deep hole. to please followers of Triumph or Dokken.
in the promo blurb for this album (“a Alessandro Del Vecchio and a conveyor QQQQQQQQQQ QQQQQQQQQQ QQQQQQQQQQ

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