Jam band sounds, blues, jazz and more are built into this release. It’s got a very classic sound to it. It’s also very entertaining. It’s a safe bet that the potential fan base for this is pretty wide. This is the kind of music that will appeal to a lot of people. It’s a great set, really.
This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2014 Volume 6 at lulu.com/strangesound.
Track by Track Review
Who I Am
The smoking hot riff driving this beast is bluesy and crunchy. The cut is great blues rock with mellower and more rocking movements. This is classy stuff for sure. It might be an obvious thing to state, but the guitar solo makes me think of both Stevie Ray Vaughn and Jeff Healey.
Oh, Lady Slide guitar starts this and the verses are delivered in a porch blues style that calls to mind Robert Johnson. It gets powered up on the section between the first two verses. After the second verse it works out to a more modern rock styled sound. This is actually quite a diverse and dynamic song as it works through the various sections that get revised and expanded as this goes through.
Only the Sky Knows While there is still some blues on this number, this mellower piece is more pure rock. It’s modern, but informed heavily by classic rock stylings. I like the melodic guitar solo and the whole piece just works really well.
Jess
There is some jazz built into this beast. Still, it’s a classic rock jam with a blues guitar solo. It rocks quite well and has some great hooks.
My Love On the one hand, this is crunchy, bluesy hard rock. They infuse a lot of funk in the mix, though. I love the powerhouse bass line on this. It’s my favorite song of the whole disc. It’s rocking and fast paced and catchy. It’s also very classy. The extended instrumental section has a jazz meets jam band kind of thing going for it. The closing jam almost gets progressive rock like at points.
Leftovers from Woodstock This smoking hot instrumental makes me think of The Allman Brothers. That said, it’s got a lot more jazz in the mix than that comparison reveals. The bass line on this one is also noteworthy.