ALBUM REVIEWS
|
|
ALBUM REVIEWS |
|
Screaming Eagle
WAKE UP THE DAWN 25.02.08 @www.vanguard-online.co.uk The accompanied press release described Screaming Eagle as ‘Doom Jazz’, which had me intrigued and on first listen they certainly have the doom criteria nailed nicely with solid baselines and catchy guitar rifts but it’s the vocal’s of Nikola Ribnikov that gives the band an edge that should see them develop a significant fan base. The first track ‘In The Dark’ off this debut album lays down a marker for the rest of the album with its bluesy rock influences that is prevalent in the rest of the album, it’s a good opener and links a little too seamlessly into ‘A Kick In The Head’ that makes both tracks almost indistinguishable from one another. I think that ‘First In, Last Out’ is the strongest track on the album, showing off their musical talents, building steadily into a track that proves this Welsh power trio can deliver. The album continues in the same ilk with ‘Saplent’, ‘NBR 1’ but it’s the instrumental ‘NBR 2’ that doesn’t really work for me. Thankfully, the album seems to pick up pace with ‘Raising Diabolus’, ‘As Old As The Hills’ delivering a darker, sharper edge that keeps the listener intrigued. The album is completed with ‘Sphere Of Influence’ and ‘Pandemonium’ (another instrumental) that completes a very positive debut. Its difficult to place Screaming Eagle into any Genre, it’s grounded very much within Blues-stoner rock with hints of Metal or even Goth that reminds me of a more melodic Paradise Lost or many of the European Metal/Doom bands to be found on Nuclear Blast or Napalm records and its this unique sound that should see them develop into the complete package musically, as for commercial success, only time will tell. As for the Jazz influence, maybe it’s my wrong preconception of the genre but I didn’t hear any and the album is better for it. www.screamingeagle.co.uk |