US alt-rockers Plastic Rhino mean business on their second release ‘Recondition’, as they celebrate a trashy hard rock sound with a nineties slant. Bringing back riffs from a (mostly) pre-grunge world, there’s a retro quality, though surprisingly, given the potentially disposable feel of some of the material, there’s a defiant steering away from the more obvious glam roots. Each track is loaded with a tough riff and often a strongly suitable melody, but those riffs are rarely pivotal in making Plastic Rhino’s material hit with a sizable punch, it’s never really Jack Glazer’s guitar playing that leaves an indelible mark. His playing is rhythmically solid without any hint of flashiness, for it doesn’t need an overt flair; the winning factor throughout these seven songs is frontwoman Atara Gottschalk (ex-Luxx), a performer who approaches each performance with consummate ease, whether called upon for something gritty, slightly unnerving or a more obvious rock wail.
Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews
STORMBRINGER – Blood & Rust
Nottingham rockers Stormbringer worked hard to promote their debut album ‘MMXIII’ with a slew of gigs, including appearances at the renowned Bloodstock and Download festivals. At the point where they were really gaining momentum, vocalist Mike Stockley moved on. His replacement, Jimi Brown was an instantly good fit with the band, his voice – occasionally sounding like the Whitfield Crane of Ugly Kid Joe tackling something more in the classic rock mould – is suitably powerful enough to make his presence felt over Stormbringer’s monster riffs. …And if it’s riffs you came for, then – even with an important change in band personnel to contend with – ‘Blood & Rust’ really should not disappoint.
GAZPACHO – Molok
Comprising extended arrangements and a deep concept, Gazpacho’s 2012 release ‘Demon‘ was an epic affair that eclipsed most of their previous works. With perhaps only ‘March of Ghosts’ in the same league, with their mixture of prog rock, folk and ambient sounds, ‘Demon’s floating soundscapes, set the band farther on the road to being one of the world’s best cult bands. Recorded with a surprisingly quick turnaround, barely eighteen months after that release, 2015’s ‘Molok’ is positively dark and joyless by comparison, a record possibly set to really test the fans. On first hearing, there are no real hooks, few memorable musical passages, just an hour’s worth of ambling oddness. Naturally, subsequent plays slowly unveil a patchwork of complex musical backdrops, with a couple of tracks closer in spirit to the earlier Gazpacho and something that eventually and somewhat grudgingly comes together as an other worldly soundscape for the dispirited, but to call ‘Molok’ a difficult listen would an understatement.
VOODOO HILL – Waterfall
After three releases with Black Country Communion and one with subsequent spin-off band California Breed, legendary rock vocalist Glenn Hughes found himself very much back in vogue and at the top of his game. Those releases gained Glenn some of the most enthusiastic press he’d gained since the 70s. With that in mind, you’d think the next best move would be to relaunch his solo career and potentially give the world his strongest solo work since 1994 ‘From Now On’.
SIRS&MADAMS – Sirs&Madams
Brooklyn’s Sirs&Madams is very much a band of two distinct moods. On this debut release, when not laying down thoughtful pastel sounds with an alt-folk leanings, they’re tearing it up via some chunky and melodic indie rock workouts. While this perhaps might sound a little too broad stylistically speaking, they have one absolute constant. Whether rocky or rootsy, the bulk of the material is held together by some truly outstanding performances from frontwoman Laura Gwynn. Her voice, a confident, belting array of sounds with a sheer melodic edge cutting through at all times, is one of the finest voices to appear on the DIY music scene for a very long time. It’s one of those voices that has such power, she could sing almost anything and make it sound utterly spellbinding.