SUGARHOUSE WYND - Seagate Sessions CDEP

Rare thing for me to be reviwing a CD by a Dundee band that I've still yet to see live, although I did it for the Grace Emilys and that turned out OK. But I digress...
From the evidence of the opening track,"Money Maker", we're talking a kind of solar-flare indie rock with a decidedly strong bluesy undercurrent. The song starts with pounding drums as a fair old blitz of searing guitar licks and driving bass join the fray, as the rhythm section hammer away, sort of lurching and driving, while the sea of lead and rhythm guitar swirls and shines. Above all this, the urgent, impassioned vocal sounds almost as though it's been lightly phased although I think that's just coz it's been recorded right upfront. The vocals soar and dive all over the mix, releasing the power with a hook that gets under your skin and really catches fire, the lead guitar particularly raw and exciting. A strong start!
"At The Start" begins with just vocals and rhthm section, the feelin initially being that the vocals are far too upfront, but then the lead guitar comes in and things improve, but then it goes again and this sort of empty canvas returns, an effect that, for me, doesn't work, but that said, it's only a few seconds before the guitar kicks in and this storming solo unleashes its fiery, bluesy licks to perefection, as the song itself kind of stumbles along, albeit at a quite dramatic pace. The vocals are OK, if a bit dry, and the track itself is a good one, no obvious hook, but still pretty good.
"Let Forever be" is ushered in on a tidal wave of bass and guitars, as the drums kind of crash in then pound away all over the place, structured fashion, while the bass and lower register guitar give a great depth and strength to the lurching beats and stumbling rhythms. Yet it's got drive, whiel the overall arrangement twists and turns in the middle. The vocals are once more right upfront, sounding as urgent and this time almost hollered. The guy has a strong voice but the way it's been recorded makes you yearn for a bit of extra texture, some harmonies or just something to give it slightly less of a raw feel. Another blazing guitar solo provides an end focus that lights the song up nicely, then lets it all down gently. Finally, "I Don't Know" and this is superb - the sea of driving riffing and rhythmic strength that propels the song in are just superb, and here the raw vocal actually fits as the thing just yells out and demands your attention. The song itself is not that memorable on first hearing, but the arrangement and overall sound keep you hooked, making you want to hear it again - and the more you do, the more you enjoy it. Bet this will be one furncae of a song done live and, for me, the best track on the EP. Overall, a band that captures the imagination and promises the potential to deliver the goods in concert and in the future. A bit like Soul City Shakers, the blues is back, and indie music is its life force - give it time and one or both of the two will re-invent something between Rolling Stones, Cream and Led Zep, only it will be a 2008 indie band - now that's worth thinking about!!

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