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