Reviews roundup – Whiskey Hell vs. The Legendary vs. Over The Effect vs. Thunder & Blitzkrieg vs. Rainburn
WHISKEY HELL
Bullets ‘n’ Burritos
Kelier Records
As you may have gathered from the name of the band and the title of the album, this is a record chock full of down and dirty biker rock, which looks back to the seventies of AC/DC and Molly Hatchet, and any decade Motorhead.
And that’s fine by me, because it’s where I grew up. It’s the second record from the band led by singer and guitarist Olly Wallenberg, and the German outfit have toured with the likes of Helloween, Bonfire and Gotthard. followed. It’s a fun album of mainly originals, although they also blast through ‘Kicked In The Teeth’ and ‘Mississippi Queen’. which shows exactly where they’re coming from.
A good time was had by all.
THE LEGENDARY
Kissin’ Kate
independent
The Legendary is one of the worst names for a band ever. It certainly doesn’t make internet searches easy.
They’re another German band (see above) and they claim to be influenced by Muse, Queens of the Stone Age and Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. Which you lead you to think that they’re some kind of stoner meets prog band, when they’re nothing of the sort, really. This single follows on from an EP called “Pirates”, which precedes their forthcoming debut, and it’s pretty good. pretty much to the point.
If anything, I’m hearing seventies power trio meets Black Stone Cherry, which as modern rock goes, is as good as it gets. They’re certainly proficient musicians, and the single does its job in making you look forward to the album.
OVER THE EFFECT
Astronomy
independent
Off to the American colonies now, for a listen to Over The Effect, an alt-rock outfit, who have more than a whiff of grunge about them. So no Blue Oyster Cult covers then?
Now anyone who knows me, knows that the only good thing to come out of Seattle was a shotgun blast, but Over The Effect have enough psychedelic twists and turns to make them listenable. For sure, they occasionally head towards REM territory when they get poppy, but they manage to drag themselves back with some good songs, such as ‘Silver Screen’, the album highlight.
The closest match is probably Smashing Pumpkins before Billy Corgan disappeared up his own rear end, and if anyone yearns for the days when the Pumps and their ilk ruled the alt-rock world, then they should give this a try.
THUNDER & BLITZKRIEG
Broke, Wild & Free
Highscore Music
Not the most tasteful name for a German band, it has to be said. After all, it is the anniversary of Victory in Europe, but as the second band of the day from Germany to head off into biker rock territory, I’ll keep my head down and hope they don’t notice.
Yes, it’s motorcycle fuelled hard rock which, as with Whiskey Hell, makes for a barnstorming listen. It’s the kind of thing you would want in a seedy club on a Saturday night, when you’ve had too much speed, your woman has chucked you, and there isn’t enough beer in the world.
There are some crushing tune here like the title track and ‘Too Fast, Woman’, and if you too are broke, wild and free, then steal a copy immediately.*
*we at Zeitgeist do not condone stealing, unless you really are broke, wild and free**
** and not even then
RAINBURN
Canvas Of Silence
independent
Finally, for today, our intercontinental trip adds in a third continent, as we head off to Bangalore in India for some prog rock. Yes, Bangalore, India, a city I only know from my former colleagues in the West Indian Potato and Rape Oil company. (Hi Guru!).
It’s a 27 minute EP of accomplished prog from Vats Iyengar – lead vocals, guitar, Toshimoa Jamir – guitar, backing vocals, Shishir Gupta – bass, backing vocals and Praveen Kumar – drums, who’ve been on the go since 2011, and unusually for a band mixing melodic prog, with metal and fusion, no keyboard player.
But it’s not mixed, as the twin guitars weave in and out to good effect, as the opening ‘Refuge’ ably demonstrates. The best song is the title track where they throw in some fusion influences a la the John McLaughlin Shakti years, which work beautifully. An excellent start, and one prog fans should check out sharpish.
The Rocker 