Review: Shooter Jennings, "Shooter"

Shooter Jennings decided to title his return to country music after himself, but it could just as easily be called Junior or Bocephus. Much of the record is simply a love letter to one of his influences – Hank Williams Jr. That’s not a bad thing, though.

The love begins flowing from the very first track, “Bound Ta Git Down,” which is Shooter’s unabashed reworking of Hank Jr.’s “Born to Boogie.” The life experiences recounted in the lyrics belong to the singer, but the rocking boogie-woogie rhythms and melodies are mostly Hank, with some notable influence from Charlie Daniels. Despite its derivative nature, though, it’s still a high-energy and fun way to start this record.

Review: Cypress Hill, "Elephants on Acid"

I can count on one hand – with fingers left over – the number of hip-hop acts I get excited about hearing new music from. Cypress Hill, though, is at the top of that list.

I was a metal kid in my early 20s who, with a couple of notable exceptions, hated hip-hop with a passion when I first heard Cypress Hill through a friend and co-worker at the fast-food joint where I was working my way through college. He was a black hardcore hip-hop fan from California, and I was a white redneck metalhead from Louisiana. We often taunted each other, good-naturedly, with our respective music while we worked. That was his intent when he popped a Cypress Hill disc in the little boom box, but there was something about this group that caught my attention. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but they had a different vibe that I really liked – and it didn’t hurt, I guess, that one of the first songs he played was “I Ain’t Goin’ Out Like That,” which sampled Black Sabbath’s “The Wizard.”

Review: The Dead Daisies, "Burn It Down"

Editor’s note: I’m introducing a slightly new format to try to breathe a little life back into this site. I miss sharing my thoughts on music, but I find myself without as much time to do it these days. In addition, some folks are starting to go to a stream-only mode for promos, which gives me less listening time and opportunity to write the longer pieces. I may still occasionally dig into an album here or there and write something longer, but hopefully these shorter reviews will help me do one or two a week.

Overview

After the outstanding Make Some Noise album in 2016, all-star group The Dead Daisies returns with new drummer Deen Castronovo (Journey, Bad English) taking over the sticks from Brian Tichy and a small tweak in their sound. 

What’s hot?

A lot of blues rock influence shows up on this album, starting with a slinky, tasty guitar riff that opens the title track and really showing up on the ballad "Set Me Free." It gives things a very slightly different feel from the straight-up, old-fashioned hard rock on Make Some Noise. That said, there’s still plenty of that sound to go around. Opener “Resurrected” reminds me of something from singer John Corabi’s underrated 1994 record with Motley Crue and songs like "What Goes Around" rock with a vengeance. The band also wears its classic rock influences on its sleeves with a cover of the Stones’ “Bitch,” and a hat tip on the opening of “Judgement Day,” which will definitely remind listeners of Blind Faith’s “Can’t Find My Way Home” before it kicks in the high octane rock on the chorus.

Review: Machine Head, "Catharsis"

There seems to be quite a lot of dislike in the metal world for Machine Head’s latest outing, but in truth, I think it’s one of the most interesting records that the band has ever done.

I get that frontman Robb Flynn is opinionated, outspoken and often gives off an air of self-importance that can make him a tough guy to like. But I’ve got quite a bit of practice in putting a musician’s personality aside and separating it from the music.

I get that some of the songs on Catharsis perhaps don’t sound like Machine Head is supposed to. Honestly, though, that’s why I like it. I’ve never been a huge fan of the band, and one of the reasons is that I find a few good songs on each album and the rest sound kind of the same. Catharsis, as the name would suggest, seems to be a very personal album for Flynn, and as a result it’s more varied and more interesting.

Review: Dark Hound, "Dawning"

When I think of Nashville these days, my first thought is usually nausea-inducing, skinny-jean wearing, faux-country boys rapping about pickup trucks and dirt roads. But even if I listed the positives of Nashville music – and there still are a few – I highly doubt that a blend of thrash, progressive and early-‘90s hard rock would appear anywhere on that list. But here I sit, listening to Dark Hound’s latest album Dawning, and enjoying the hell out of it.

Listening to this record, I hear shades of some favorites: early Saigon Kick, Lillian Axe’s more progressive work, Testament, perhaps a little Dream Theater here and there. But Dark Hound blends it all together into a sound that’s completely their own and doesn’t really fit into any of the current trends or sub-genres in the metal world.