ALBUM REVIEW
Keeping The Classics ClassyBY HARRISON MOORE ON FEBRUARY 21, 2013
When searching for a hit, poppy, new album to tear apart, I had a bit of an epiphany. I thought, if I write a ton of album reviews on records everyone has already heard twenty five times, wouldn’t that just make me the guy that publishes what everyone was already thinking? So, I decided I would take a new approach to the “album review” by not limiting this section to only critiquing today’s biggest, newest hits. Instead, thought I would search for bands and albums who don’t get much publicity, but make real music worth buying and do all I can do to talk you into agreeing with me. Sound good?
After my goal was set, I dug deep into Spotify and came across a band with something you don’t hear much anymore; an authentic retro sound. Simple, I know, but it’s rare. The California based band calls themselves Vintage Trouble, which is quite fitting. The band takes characteristics from groundbreaking bands such as The Rolling Stones, The Animals and Chuck Berry and does absolutely nothing to them. And that right there is something worth loving. So many musicians try so hard to transform a classic sound into something they call their own and, most of the time their attempts just take away from the quality of their final product. Vintage Trouble takes advantage of this sound by not only writing songs that put the blues and good ole rock n’ roll to good use but also by recording with equipment as old as their sound. Their only full length album, “The Bomb Shelter Sessions”, makes you want to grab a Coca Cola, some Chuck Taylors and taking a cruise to the diner in your 63’ Corvette. The Band truly utilizes that old, fuzzy, distorted guitar tone, beefy drums and clean, slappy bass tones that will make your speakers some kind of happy. The opening, up-tempo, funk track, called “Blues Hand Me Down” starts the album off with a bang and is, without a doubt, my favorite, but the record surely doesn’t go downhill from there. As you move down the track list you get into some slower grooves and ballads that will make you want to go confess your love to the girl of your dreams. You also have a track or two like “Not Alright By Me” that gives the listener a little bit of a John Mayer feel and tone leading the way towards the end of the album. The final three tracks, “Jezzebella”, “Total Strangers”, and “Run Outta You” are what I believe to be the rest of Marty McFly’s set list he never got to finish in Back to the Future. They help end the album on a happy note, literally. If you’re anything like me, you are always looking for new music to sing loud and off pitch to, and this album makes me sound halfway decent. The technical characteristics of this album are the same that led to the music we all know and love. So the next time you need to spice up your boring homework assignment, road trip or rainy afternoon, appreciate the oldies and go check out Vintage Trouble. HTML Comment Box is loading comments...
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