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The 1-10s

Fighting for a Golden Age

Review by Gary Hill

The sound of this band is well rooted in a garage 1960s hard rock texture. It has a lot of blues and a lot of classic rock in place. Coming from Nashville, you might expect to hear some country music here, but only one track has even a trace of it (and then it’s slight). All in all, these guys are a great group that blends classic bluesy rock with a little progressive rock and bits of punk to create a sound that is both accessible and familiar and still new.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2011  Volume 1 at lulu.com/strangesound.

Track by Track Review
Run From Your Master

Imagine a sound a bit like Blue Cheer meets King Crimson and early Rush and you’ll have an idea of what this track is like. There isn’t a lot of prog rock here, more straight ahead rock and roll and stoner rock, but there are some intriguing musical lines and patterns that are closer to prog. The instrumental section just before the outro, in particular, combines a hard edged and furious sound with psychedelia and prog.

Dying Blues
This is perhaps closer to Blue Cheer mixed with Lenny Kravitz and Led Zeppelin. It’s raw and furious and very tasty. There’s some killer classic rock guitar soloing on hand.
Religious Fervour
Uber heavy, this is a bit like a heavier Black Crowes. There’s a definite punk vibe here, but it’s very heavy blues in terms of the main musical style. There’s some killer slide guitar and the other elements to be found in this track include a 1960s garage style rock sound.
Eye for an Eye
This cut is more melodic. There’s real classic rock sound built into it. And, I have to say, traces of the country sounds for which The 1-10s’ hometown of Nashville are better known. “Eye for an Eye” is mellow and balladic with a real alternative rock element.
Crazy for You
There is a bit of a Hendrix sound here, but also plenty of the stoner rock sounds heard on much of the rest of the set. Comparisons to the Yardbirds are certainly in order, too.
Dragonfly
A bit mellower than some of the other stuff here, there’s a great bluesy texture to this and some more of the prog elements we heard early in the release.
So Sad
There’s definitely some punk rock built into this, along with The Yardbirds, Led Zeppelin and other bluesy hard rock. The guitar soloing is particularly noteworthy on this piece.
Fighting for a Golden Age
The title track, this is a bit rawer. It reminds me a bit of a harder edged Georgia Satellites. It’s got a great psychedelic riff to it, though, that calls to mind The Yardbirds. There is definitely a punk vibe here, too.
Bad Day
There is definitely more progressive rock built into this one, but it’s still got plenty of the bluesy hard rock heard on the rest of the album, too.
Liars and Thieves
Blend some jazz with a stripped down, yet powerful, bluesy groove that’s not that far removed from the music of Whitesnake and you’ll get a good idea of what this song sounds like. There’s a powered up jam later in the piece that’s killer.
 
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