Although they’ve always been lumped in with the third wave of US ska bands, The Slackers have often presented more of a mature sound. Much like The Toasters, The Pietasters and Hepcat, their musical approach has drawn far more from a reggae pool over the years, and although their studio catalogue isn’t as extensive as some of their peers, it’s more than worth exploring. Although it may be short, this two track release will certainly please their fans.
Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews
SILVER DOLLAR ROOM – Gilded Echoes
Scottish rockers Silver Dollar room aren’t afraid of going retro on their debut album ‘Gilded Echoes’. By taking influence from a wealth of classic rock bands and mixing in strong elements of a post-grunge sound, they’ve created a ten song release that’s riff heavy, but also very accessible. Naturally, there are times when the influences shine perhaps a little too brightly, but that never stops the songs being enjoyable – and it’s always clear that this band more than knows their way around a decent hook.
FIND ME – Nightbound
Eleven years after the release of their well received ‘Wings of Love’ album, the bulk of Find Me’s ‘Nightbound’ sees the much loved AOR band often sticking to a tried and tested brand of melodic rock. A couple of tracks deviate from the formula to explore different avenues of classic rock, but it’s fair to say that this fifth album plays very much to the fan. Drawing influence from bands like Survivor – whose Jim Peterik scores co-writing credits – and more modern melodic rock bands like Lionheart, the material has no real care for fashion, but what it does, it does brilliantly. So much of the strength in the band’s sound is due to vocalist Robbie LaBlanc (sometime of Blanc Faces) who possesses one of the best melodic rock voices of his generation. When you have someone like Robbie on board, capable of summoning the power of Joe Lynn Turner circa 1985 and the huge melodic sounds of a peak Dave Bickler or Steve Overland, there’s little point in trying to branch out or add new twists to a classic rock backdrop – his huge voice handles the 80s influenced sounds so perfectly.
THE HALF-CUBES – My Girl / Someday
This two track release from The Half-Cubes is, in power pop terms, pure gold. Its pedigree is assured thanks to two different aspects. Firstly, as their name suggests, this band are made up from half of power pop legends The Flashcubes and, secondly, the tracks featured are both re-workings of classics from the Eric Carmen catalogue. Although neither track has been drastically rethought, both sound great with a brighter production sound than Carmen’s original recordings were ever afforded. ‘My Girl’, in particular, plays like a genre classic for 2024, despite its mid 70s vintage.
MAMMOTH VOLUME – Raised Up By Witches
Swedish stoner rock band Mammoth Volume are an interesting prospect. Their work isn’t shy in sharing the kind of 70s guitar tones you’ll find on early Queens of The Stone Age recordings, or exploring the corners of retro sounds beloved by latter day Opeth, but there’s always more to their albums than fuzzy heaviness and Hammond drenched grooves. ‘Raised Up By Witches’, their fifth release, in many ways, finds their mix of blues, fuzzy stoner metal and jazz coming of age.