As I typed the band names in the second of a series of shorter reviews, I realised there was an unintentional distinctly Halloweeny feel about the four bands in this blog (I know, it December now…but I like the element of spooky compatibility), despite the very different music styles. I’ll just say that I meant it and it was all part of the master plan, however much of a lie that may be…
Jo Carley & the Old Dry Skulls – I’ll Put My Voodoo on You
Jo Carley and the Old Dry Skulls returned with another hypnotic collection of gothic/horror-tinged swamp rockabilly trash blues, Jo drawing you in on opening track Alligator Blues with a darkly seductive introduction “It’s me, I am Jo” unsuspectingly capturing your soul as you become ensnared under her spell, the enticing allure continuing a couple of tracks later when she warns “I’ll put my voodoo on you” on the title track and such is her charm and charisma, you don’t want to resist. The album continues to ensure their is no escape with the foot tapping rockabilly of Don’t Need no Devil and the hip swaying inducing Calypso rhythms of Little Dead Lovin’. If you think all this talk of death and the afterlife is too leak, think again, this album is a whole lotta fun, as demonstrated by the blues,y romp that is Good Time. If you were a fan of True Blood, you might hear a hint of its Jace Everett penned title song as you are helplessly drawn under the irresistible influence of Dose of Your Medicine. Not one note is wasted across these eleven songs, and as the final strains of the lullaby like Zombie Silent Boogie fade out, there is almost a sense of disappointment that you are back in the ear world and haven’t been transported away to some mythical land populated by ghouls, vampires and zombies.
Witch Fever – Congregation
From the opening strains of album opener Blessed Be Thy Name, the potent power and palpable dark threatening energy of Witch Fever is manifest. As the baton is passed to Beauty and Grace, there is no let up, there is a provocative truculence in the manner in which the lyrics are delivered across combative crunching guitars. And so the defiant progression continues into At the Core, the feeling of menace never far from the fore the brazne pugnacious nature of the music itself creating a release for all your pent-up aggressions and stresses. The title song comes on like a goth-like masterpiece in its bombastic stature before exploding into a furious ball of explosive vitality, with a vivacious ness of spirit that can’t fail to ignite an intense sense of animated vitality in the listener. It is hard to pigeonhole the music of Witch Fever, which I guess is the very point of the band, lyrically and stylistically this feels like a push back on a religious upbringing, a kick back of sorts, bringing with it a hard edged, hard hitting line in rampant raging guitars, topped with a sassy rebellious punk attitude, all packaged up in a furious ball of defiant but at the same time vigorously uplifting boundless exuberance.
Unholy Frankenstein – Released
A mini album of hypnotic electronic beats laced with a pointedly barbed commentary on life, dark acerbic wit with a hint of despair at the state of society, from Glasgow music stalwart Joe Bone. As well as their own stark and uncompromising synth compositions, including the epic Andy’s An Android, The Creator and The Being have dragged the traditional song dating from the Jacobite uprisings, Ye Jacobites By Name, kicking and screaming into the 21st Century, in doing so highlighting that the song is as relevant today as it was back when it was first written.
The Bloody Nerve – Act 1: Retrograde/Act 2: Reckoning
The first six “episodes” of the journey of The Bloody Nerve across two CDs/EPs have been out there for some time now. This is somewhat of a concept project, Act 1 & 2 respectively including three tracks or “Episodes” each one with its own video. The former collection came out in 2021, with Act 2 following earlier this year. The story starts with the A Million Arms, stylistically a hard-rock anthem packed with adrenaline fuelled driving riffs provided by guitarist Stacey Blood and a potent vocal from frontwoman Laurie Ann Layne. The band’s upfront and hard rockin’ style almost completely defies their Nashville roots, with opening song of Act 2, All Blood, No Treasure continuing where Act 1 left off, powerhouse drumming underlining the gruff vocal from Stacey Blood, until that is, you reach Episode 6 Doin’ All Day, closing out Act 2 initially dialling back on the power rock riffs and introducing more of a gospel country rock feel, layering riffs and building as the song rises to its formidable pinnacle.