Here’s an experiment for you. The next time some self-righteous muffin comes up to you and informs you, with no hint of irony, that ‘rock is dead’, thank them kindly for their premature eulogy and then calmly invite them to listen to this latest effort from The New Roses….
The New Roses, for those of you who somehow slept through 2017’s one more for the road, are a German act whose dedication to all things rock has reached a new peak with nothing but wild, a good-time rock ‘n’ roll album that latches on to that perfect mix of nostalgia, explosive energy and wild-eyed exuberance that lies at the heart of any great rock band and ramps it up to eleven. Unphased by fashion, unencumbered by a need to please anyone but themselves, The New Roses are an awful lot of fun and should sit high on the to-buy list of anyone with a penchant for air guitar.
Honestly, nothing but wild could begin and end with soundtrack of my life, a song that encapsulates Timmy Rough’s rock ‘n’ roll philosophy in three easy minutes. With blazing guitar riffs, Timmy singing better than ever and lyrics that evoke the singer’s nascent interest in all things rock, soundtrack of my life is exactly the album opener that nothing but wild needed. Lyrically we’re into cliché territory on track two, as the band insist that you can’t stop rock & roll, although musically the band deliver the track with such wide-eyed innocence that you can’t help but be taken in by it all. Lead single down by the river is a paean to the band’s hometown, paying tribute to the innocence of youth and the importance of nostalgia to the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle. A mid-tempo rock ballad it has an insistent hook and a chorus that is destined to be sung by audiences the world over when the band hit the road. The title track casts a knowing look in the direction of the eighties, the harmonised opening and bluesy licks evoking images of pouting rock stars gazing out from the covers of magazines long consigned to the great publisher in the sky. Built around a chrome-plated riff, Heartache is a good song, but it doesn’t quite pack the punch you feel it will have live. However, the stunning acoustic ballad, the bullet, hits the mark with a sparkling melody and a Bon Jovi vibe, the simple lyric dealing with loss and the redemptive power of music. The slow-burn of Running out of hearts resets the pace with a taut beat and strong melodic hook irresistibly drawing the listener along, and it caps the first half nicely.
With the record at the half-way mark, unknown territory recaptures the fire of the opening tracks, the crackling riff and tough beat leading to a fine chorus that, again, will have a live audience in raptures. Built around a harder riff, as the crow flies is an album highlight with plenty of grit in the performance, whilst give and take is even heavier, the hefty riff and blistering chorus neatly summarising the strengths of The New Roses. Having quickened the pulse it’s time for another ballad in the form of the only thing, a track that sits a little too closely to genre tropes to really ignite. The acoustic-led meet me half way is a fine track although closer glory road is the real star, bringing things to a fine conclusion as the band bring down the curtain with big riffs and a strong vocal performance.
As an additional bonus, the CD offers up a pair of acoustic bonus tracks. First up is an acoustic take on down by the river which, despite being stripped down to the bone, is sung with even greater power than the studio version. It’s good to hear the track shorn of its firepower and it shows that the secret of The New Roses’ success is the ability to write great songs that need little embellishment. Next up is fight you leaving me which, having been delivered acoustic on the last tour, is a nice present for fans who have supported the band over the years.
Nothing but wild is an album that has no interest in reinventing the wheel. Rather it is a love poem to the bands that inspired The New Roses in the first place, referencing the likes of Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Europe and Guns ‘n’ Roses without actually sounding directly like any of those bands. Although the album slows a touch in the mid-section, the fire that burns within the band is easy to see and impossible to resist, especially when the band unleash tracks of the calibre of soundtrack of my life, down by the river and give and take. There’s no doubting the passion of The New Roses and, with nothing but wild, the band have added a number of essential cuts to their already impressive arsenal of live killers. Catch them on the road – as good as the studio albums are, it’s where they belong. 8.5
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