New Music
The month’s best guitar music – a hand-picked selection of the finest fretwork on wax
Deep Purple Whoosh! EarMusic
10/10
The Purps rise triumphant on their 21st album release
Bassist Roger Glover termed this new album as “Deep Purple is putting the Deep back into Purple”, an intriguing notion considering how unique this rock band is. It’s valid, too: the music is punchy, strong and exploratory suggesting their enthusiasm is far from fading. Whoosh!, a word that vocalist Ian Gillan says describes “the transient nature of humanity”, is the third album produced with Bob Erzin and shows their working relationship is in rude health.
13 tracks feature, kicking off with the infectious groove of Throw My Bones where Steve Morse’s swinging riff is augmented by Don Airey’s orchestral melodic phrases. The solo is typical Morse – soaring bends, big vibrato and switching between neck and bridge pickups for tonal balance. Drop The Weapon (Gillan’s observations of violence in cities) has a guitar riff as big as a house and a solo that excels. Kicking on his Engl amp’s clean channel, Morse plays a unique ‘blues meets country’ solo on the otherwise rocking We’re All The Same In The Dark. The triplet-infused Nothing At All is a great example of Purples’ guitar/organ interplay as Morse and Airey trade exquisite Bachesque lines. The darkly ominous Step By Step is rhythmically intriguing with band pushes and pulls as Gillan’s ghostly vocals shimmer on top.
As for the classical middle section with its shifting chords, few bands have the harmonic vocabulary or arranging skills to craft something like this. The fusion blending Man Alive is another impressive production with orchestra, evolving band parts and electronic icing that really lets the band play. If the band can keep this level of creative quality up, here’s hoping there are even more albums forthcoming! [JS]
Standout track: Nothing At All
For fans of: Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Rainbow
Steve Hackett Selling England By The Pound & Spectral Mornings: Live At Hammersmith InsideOut Music
9/10
Prog maestro calls in on his illustrious past
Steve Hackett is playing a strong hand with his Genesis Revisited project. The current line-up of his old outfit rarely tours and when they do they offer only the briefest glimpse into the Peter Gabriel era material from their considerable back catalogue. So the idea of hearing classic early 70s Genesis albums faithfully performed in their entirety is a sure-fire winner with the band’s fanbase. The 2019 tour comprised a mix of Steve’s solo material, with an emphasis on 1979’s Spectral Mornings, plus Genesis’s own Selling England By The Pound, reputedly Steve’s own favourite Genesis album, which was originally released in 1973, and this collection details the Hammersmith Eventim Apollo gig from the final night of the tour. Available as a double-CD with a two-hour-long DVD of the entire show, there’s plenty here for die-hard prog fans to enjoy, including Selling England’s ‘missing track’, the Hackett/Gabriel composition, Déjà Vu. [DM]
Standout track: Los Endos
For fans of: Genesis, Peter Gabriel
Savoy Brown Ain’t Done Yet Quarto Valley Records
8/10
Return of the 60s blues boomers
A blues-rock trio from the mid-60s British blues explosion (alongside John Mayall’s Blues Breakers), Savoy Brown is fronted by singer/guitarist Kim Simmonds. This, the band’s 41st album, shows them still going strong. The 10 tracks present the band in fine form and very much aligned to their energised blues-rock style with driving riffs, story-based lyrics and searing solos. If you like UK legends like Eric Clapton and Robin Trower or US powerhouses ZZ Top and George Thorogood, Savoy Brown will appeal greatly. Opener All Gone Wrong has a great rhythmic stomp and plenty of Flying V pentatonic action. Devil’s Highway is full of crunchy 335 playing and a soaring solo in the outro. River On The Rise has a distinctive George Harrison feel, not just from the strumming acoustics but the melodic slide playing, too. Nicely done! [JS]
Standout track: Devil’s Highway
For fans of: Bluesbreakers, ZZ Top
Walter Trout Ordinary Madness Provogue
8/10
Walter serves up a wholesome mix of blues ’n’ boogie
Walter Trout’s new album, recorded in his old friend Robby Krieger’s studio and completed just days before lockdown, has a dark theme running through it. What started as a personal commentary ended up having global significance .“Everybody is dealing with something ,” Walter says,“and I’m no different from anybody else.” The title track sets the mood for the album, complete with brooding vocals and soaring guitar, and moves through tracks such as Heartland and All Out Tears, which set out to explore the human condition set to the soundtrack of deep down an’ dirty blues. A couple of surprise six-string guests appear on the album, including Krieger’s Doors Gibson SG and a James Burton Paisley Telecaster, both provided courtesy of studio manager Michael Dumas and put to very good use.“The whole place is full of vintage gear and it’s all there for you, whatever you want,”Walter enthuses. The result is an object lesson in fiery blues guitar and well worth a visit. [DM]
Standout track: Ordinary Madness For fans of: Robin Trower, John Mayall
Flying Colors Third Stage: Live In London Music Theories Recordings
9/10
Steve Morse ignites the live touchpaper
What sets this modern prog supergroup apart from others is that they reduce their metal tendencies and augment their 70s influences with a pop sensibility. It’s a heady mix and allows them a wider audience base, certainly when crowd pleasers like Kayla (quite a memorable earworm) are considered. Recorded live in London during 2019, the two discs are crammed with impressive songs, with Casey McPherson handling most of the vocal duties, backed up by keyboardist Neal Morse. While time and care can be spent crafting studio albums, the live arena is a great benchmark for how good a band actually sounds together and this live set shows Flying Colors as outstanding. Steve Morse (making his second appearance in this month’s album reviews) brings a lot to this band: punchy riffs, clean arpeggiating and his soaring rock-meets-Celtic phrasing is genuinely unique. On the epic Crawl his blues-rock melodic phrasing and picking blasts are given plenty of room to shine. In short, an electric and eclectic band, indeed. [JS]
Standout track: Crawl
For fans of: Steve Morse Band, Dixie Dregs