GUGUN POWER TRIO - Solid Ground (CD)

I just loved the first Grooveyard release by Indonesian Gugun Power Trio. Power trio certainly being the label of the day here. Gugun is a killer guitarist and an awesome bluesy singer, which he and his fellows drummer Bowie and bass player Jono, immediately proves in the opening title track. Groovy, bluesy, rockin’ and something it’s totally impossible not to play air guitar to. Holy crap, this rocks!! It’s got the classic riff-oriented Hendrixy vibe to it that I love. The album grooves, it sways and it swaggers. It’s a versatile album within the limits of blues rock. There’s the funky vibe in tracks like One Heavy Night and Vixen Eyes, the shuffle groove in Mission, the cool blues in Trampled Rose, the up-tempo strut in Silent Rider, yes, Solid Ground has it all. What I also love is that Gugun adopts his sound to fit the songs. It’s not just one album-one sound. He turns the distortion up when it’s required, adds some wah when it fits and keeps it quite clean when the song needs it. This is definitely one of my favourite blues rock albums of the year!
Janne Stark 
Country: Indonesia
Year: 2011
Label: Grooveyard Records
Link: www.grooveyardrecords.com