BONAFIDE – Flames (CD)

Sweden’s rock n roll machine #1 is at it again! They are definitely one of the best live bands in Sweden, no doubt. The energy, power and joy is only surpassed by Aussies Airborne (Well, f**k they surpass EVERYONE!!). The band’s new album, Flames continues in the old tradition with the, not surprising, lovely shameless vintage AC/DC flirts, such as Smoke And Fire and Bottle Of Jack. But, there’s way more to the album than that. Take a track like Power Down, which shows a new side of Bonafide, with a nice blues-quirky side with nice little twists and turns. Absolutely love that track. Pontus Snibb is not only a first-class singer, he also treats his six string with love and emotion, which definitely shows in his geetar majik in this track. The lack of brutal metal distortion is compensated with nice punchy bass guitar, a proof that heaviness ain’t just about the amount of distortion, but about the entire package and what the joint string forces create together. A power pack! Another cool surprise is the soul oriented influences in tracks like Written In Stone, which made me think of The Black Crowes and some vintage Skynyrd, also in the cool harmony guitar part. Keep A Safe Distance is another cool stomper which I think will go down well live! It’s only rock and roll, but I like it, yepp, I do!

Janne Stark

Label: Off Yer Rocka

Year: 2017

Country: Sweden

ELECTRIC GUITARS – String Fever (CD)

The phrase “Danish dynamite” has somehow mostly been connected to hard rockers Pretty Maids. I would however like to widen that epithet to also include this powerful foursome. String Fever is the second effort from the Danish rockers fronted by guitarists/singers Soren Andersen and Mika Vandborg. Both have released their own, outstanding solo albums, while Soren has also been part of Glenn Hughes band plus Kick The Kangaroo, Mike Tramp etc. The title track opens the album with a groovy Hendrixy melodic rocker mixing cool vintage guitar sounds, loose drums, working bass and cool sassy vocals, ending in a full-on guitar orgy. I really love the production, keeping it fresh but still honouring the late 60s/early 70s in its dynamics and style. White Flag opens with one of the coolest, funkiest riffs I’ve heard all year (2015, that is). Makes me think of a mix of Philip Sayce and Frank Marino with a touch of Lenny Kravitz in his rock mood. Killer track! F***ing LOVE that riff!! Running Out of Time continues the riff mania and keeps the heaviness pounding with its intense and cool rhythm work. Another heavy hitter that just completely knocked me out! Girlfriend hits some others strings, surprisingly poppy and more akin to 70s Cheap Trick (which I happen to like). Day Off continues in a swampy southern early ZZ Top meets Blackberry Smoke vein, while She Wants My Guitar (feat. Ida Corr) draws more towards AC/DC meets The Black Crows with the addition of the vintage talk box effect. A cool hit-oriented rocker! I like the way Electric Guitars blend rough, riffy vintage sounding bluesy rock with quite poppy melodies, without sounding cheesy. The guitar work is totally stunning and the vocal qualities fits the style just perfectly, not too nice, not too, dirty. A killer band and a killer album, indeed!

Janne Stark

Label: Target

Country: Denmark

Year: 2015

Video: https://youtu.be/s26ArfXwPGk

FEINTS - Feints (digital release)

Boston rocks! Yepp, Feints proves it! This Bostonian four-piece makes their debut with a digital release, which should be out on CD and even vinyl! The album kicks off with the rockin’ “Los Angeles At Last”. Powerhouse singer Amy Douglas who sounds like a mix between Mother’s Finest’s Baby Jean and Tina Turner on steroids fronts the band. She is definitely the perfect vocal match for the bands straight-in-your-face power rock. “Saturday” continues in a slightly Cheap Trick:ish vein. The band has its feet firmly rooted in the seventies, which is a quality mark in my book. “Invalid” continues in the Tricky vein, but Amy’s voice really takes the band to another place. Man, those vocal cords have got to be leather coated! The songs are really catchy and this should appeal to fans of anything from classic bands like Earthquake, The Faces or Cheap Trick to fans of The Hellacopters and the rocking side of Mother’s Finest or even vintage Pat Benatar. There are also more southern sounding stomping rock songs such as “Hudson Valley Stomp”, which reminded me a bit of The Black Crowes. “Death Rattle” takes it in a totally different direction, with its almost metal-punkish vibe. Cool track indeed, with Amy turning her lungs inside out! The band, featuring guitarist David Baron, bass player Rob Phillips and drummer Tim Marten are tight as a rat’s ass, and these boys really keep this train moving! Right after the death rattle the band lays down a beautiful ballad called “Little America” with Amy also showing her piano skills and David is throwing in some countryish guitar licks. Really nice.!The release also offers a free bonus track, which happens to be an outstanding cover of Thin Lizzy’s Fighting My Way Back. This is a highly enjoyable, unsitstillable, rockin’ tildawnable picke of digital media. Highly recommended!

Janne Stark

Year: 2015

Country: USA

Label: self-released

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ8zkUo6tYE
Bancamp: https://feints1.bandcamp.com/album/feints