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Howl This third effort from a band that has shown a significant amount of promise is a delightful screwball. For Black Rebel Motorcycle Club fans, the change in direction may end up becoming a welcome evolution. Howl is less interested in capturing postmodern anthemia than it is about exploring the varied influences of BRMC's three members: guitarist and vocalist Peter Hayes, bassist Robert Levon Been and drummer Nick Jago. The result is an album that aims to take on the heavyweights of the rock music stage, and instigate a hopeful changing-of-the-guard in the process. Howl's most memorable song is “Ain't No Easy Way,” a raw, roadhouse stew of acoustic twang simmering atop Jago's bass drum, a track that would feel right at home on the Deadwood soundtrack. But Howl's sound is much more diverse, being as it is a mashup of wide-ranging influences, from beat-folk to rockabilly to backwater blues and back again, all executed with the band's layered harmonies and resonant rhythms. But the music of Howl is far more haunting than BRMC's earlier efforts. Which is an interesting shift. After all, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club is a band that initially sprinted off the block with their eyes on taking the rock baton from idols The Jesus and Mary Chain. But that sound can be a slippery slope, if not approached correctly. And BRMC has refused to rest on The Jesus and Mary Chain's laurels by remaining true to itself. “We weren't trying to find a new identity with this record,” Been told me in a recent interview. “This really is our history and our voice.” And all great history includes its share of acrimony. In other words, Howl is a cautionary tale about mending personal fences that hits home, and it should: The effort was completed amid a breakup and makeup with Jago, who abruptly left the band nearly a year ago during a European tour. For a band that channels rock's rebel spirit -- as the name implies -- it's evident that BRMC's renewed dynamic makes for an interresting spiritual passage. | MASHUP: AUGUST  No Million Dollar BabyIggy Pop is American rock royalty. But A Million in Prizes shouldn't be laid at his throne: MORE MASHUP: JULY
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LOAD & STREAM SLEATER-KINNEY ANTHRAX DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE: BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB: |
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