Rival Sons – ‘Head Down’ Album Review

When Rival Sons appeared on the High Voltage stage last year it was but a few months after the critically acclaimed release of their remarkable ‘pressure and time’, an album that was steeped in soul, attitude and swampy Blues spirit played by a band that effectively channelled Jim Morrison from beyond the grave, slamming his ghost, bug-eyed and foaming at the mouth into a musical melting pot that mixed up Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and 13^th floor elevators with dizzying effect. What separated Rival Sons from any number of similarly themed classic rock acts was the sheer verve, panache and swagger that the band incorporated into their music, making every track sound utterly fresh and exhilarating and it is fair to say that the band’s star was on the ascent as they entered the studio to record follow up album ‘head down’.

For fans of the band it will certainly be no surprise that the band have deviated little from the sonic blue print laid down on their previous effort, yet the album holds a number of  surprises and the whole sounds bigger, brighter, bolder and more varied than its predecessor. Opening track ‘Keep on swinging’ cruises on a scintillating riff offset by lethargic drums that roll and swing with the groove, whilst singer Jay Buchanan wails and moans with the drugged ecstasy of the possessed all the way into a gospel-infused chorus that is a delight to behold. It’s like being dragged kicking and screaming through a Glenn Hughes set at a soul review by Jim Morrison on Ketamine only to land, head first, in the lap of a full on Gospel choir whilst Jimi Hendrix jams on his guitar. The joy that leaps out of the speakers is tangible and beautiful, and you’re hooked form the very start.

‘Wild animal’ opens to the sound of a heavily distorted amp before the full band come swaggering in like Mick Jagger to unleash a song that is pure pop, no matter how much you dress it up with fuzz pedals. Like QOTSA, Rival Sons know that the value of a good tune is immeasurable, and so whilst they rock, roll and wail with the best of them, there is a solid emphasis on crafting genuinely memorable melodies for the listener to hang on to throughout the album. Heavier is the psychedelic freak out of ‘you want to’ which features Jay channelling Muddy Waters via Robert Plant on one of his finest vocal performances. Back to the groove, and the band kick back with the sun-dappled ‘until the sun comes’ which recalls the fuzzy joy of Dinosaur Jnr crossed with the twisted pop of ‘loaded’ era Velvet Underground. This ability to absorb, assimilate and retool their influences is what makes Rival Sons great and for all the myriad influences flying through the mix it never sounds like anything other than the Sons having the time of their lives in the studio.

Having lulled you into a false sense of security, ‘run from revelation’ is just immense. A monumental slide-guitar riff kicks into a brutally dry blues workout that’s part Zeppelin, part Bonamassa, the guitars a stunning backdrop for Jay’s sand-blasted vocals and it serves as an early highlight on the album. After such a blistering rendition, it is only natural that the Sons would want to take a step back, and so ‘Jordan’ proves to be a subtle, Jeff Buckley referencing acoustic track complete with somnambulant drums and liquid guitars. Like everything here it is imbued with a sense of soul, but the slow burning emotions smoulder and flash in the twilight as the music swirls around you. You can’t, of course, keep a good band down and a rolling drum attack sees the band fall into a brilliant rock ‘n’ roll pastiche opening with the mock-confessional lyric “when I was young  sometimes I’d be a bad boy…”. Lyrically brilliant, the music has a brilliantly loose swing to it that gets the feet tapping and the guitars, carefully employed for maximum effect, showcase the band at their most wildly inventive. After such a brilliant diversion, ‘the heist’ is pure Doors, the vocals and music torn straight from the heady days of 1965 and then ‘three fingers’ kicks off like a jam between Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page in a whiskey bar in downtown LA, the guitars blazing away with real fire and fury.

Tearing through the album at a ferocious pace now, it is the stunning ‘Nava’ that captures the attention by dropping out the electrics altogether. A truly beautiful acoustic instrumental it provides the briefest of segues into the epic ‘Manifest destiny (part 1)’ which opens upon a solid, chiming chord before mutating into Rival Sons very own ‘Kashmir’. It is, quite simply, the finest riff, the finest music that the band have yet put their name to and it elevates this album from the ranks of the extremely good to the unmitigated classic. With a simply stunning, wah-inflected solo drifting across its second half, this is rock music as it should be heard and it’s as if Rival Sons have somehow drifted in from the late seventies to remind us that you don’t need a ton of electronic trickery to craft a great album, you just need the attitude and the skills to blaze away on your instruments without worrying about what anyone might say. It’s the sound of a band in thrall to the music, lost in the amazing sounds they are making, and there is  no doubt in my mind that people will still be listening to, and marvelling over, ‘manifest Destiny’ for many, many years to come. It is a perfect hard rock epic and it feels like a challenge to the bands out there to step up their game because the Sons are taking no prisoners.  Its follow up (‘Manifest destiny (part 2)’) is the light to its predecessor’s dark, the riffs brighter, the vocals beautifully soulful and sounding like a cross between Led Zeppelin III and Black Rebel Motorcycle club. As with the former track it is a remarkable piece of work and if the Sons had released an album just with ‘nava’ and ‘the manifest destiny’ (both parts) and nothing else, it would still be hailed as a classic, so powerful is this triplet of amazing rock songs. The album closes with ‘true’, a track that once again references Jeff Buckley with its powerful vocal front and centre whilst a subtle acoustic backdrop provides music as gentle and cleansing a soft rain after a storm. It’s the perfect closer and an emotional moment for the dedicated listener as the album draws to its end.

The question has to be asked – can ‘head down’ possibly be as good as I have tried to portray or is this simple hyperbole? I have lived with the album now for just under a week and I can honestly say that such a period of time is nowhere near enough to appreciate the record’s myriad charms. True the music here is cut from the same sonic cloth as ‘pressure and time’ but the musical growth here is simply staggering. There are a number of great, great rock songs here, just waiting to be discovered, but the closing songs – the beautiful ‘true’, the absolutely stunning ‘the manifest destiny (part 1)’ and the glorious ‘Nava’ are simply perfect examples of the genre – as if the band had it in mind to create the ultimate fusion of every great rock and blues band of the last half century  – and to hear music as fresh as this, as exciting as this, is never less than an absolute joy. Is ‘head down’ that good? Quite simply it stands tall not only in the great pantheon of modern rock, but with its own acknowledged peers. You could play this after Zeppelin or the Doors and it would still sound as fresh and invigorating as it does in isolation – no mean feat for any band. Rival Sons have, without a doubt, crafted a near-flawless album of heartfelt, blues and soul-infused hard rock and listening to ‘head down’ is as invigorating and life affirming as rock music gets. It’s not only that good; it’s better.

Check out ‘Keep on swinging’ here: