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To
lots of undeserved criticism rockers can’t and
shouldn’t do anything but keep on rocking. And so,
Saviours, Oakland’s lambasted quartet solely because of
their association with ‘big and mainstream’ (as in
‘not
really big, nor very mainstream’) Kemado Records, have
put out a third full-length that’s inarguably pure, raw
and rudimentary. No one that has listened to this their
third album in its entirety can question the riffs. I
am talking about the quality of them and their place of
precedence. The guitars ravage with the passion of a
vampire for blood and move in basic mode, through
ebullient timeless dynamics that mix 80’s chugga-chugga
with warrior dynamics and self-flagellating solos.
Lovers of metal partly fell in love with the genre
because of the guitars. Hence, here is Accelerated
Living.
The songs here
lie somewhere between traditional metal and speed thrash metal.
Saviours is now achieving a vintage sound that’s almost Kill ‘Em
All-ish in all its propulsive energy and classically British.
Take for instance, the gallop of tunes like “Burnin’ Cross”,
where the only missing factor are the glorious vocals of Bruce
Dickinson. The dual guitar harmonies do not shine as mighty
bright as those of Smith and Murray (Gers doesn’t really count),
but the lack of bombast gives the music of Saviours certain
workman-like, everyday-dude allure. These tunes are endearing.
In that sense, listening to Saviours brings you closer to
Motorhead than it does to Iron Maiden.
The vocals of
Austin Barber are well-planted on the grass. That’s to say, the
man can sing as well as you or me. His voice has strength but
intelligently, like a dude aware of his shortcomings, he pulls
no tricks nor goes the power metal way forcing the operatic. In
“The Rope fo Cranal Knowledge”, Barber efficiently backs up a
rock and roll boogie that’s more Thin Lizzy than Iron Maiden
could ever be. The only part missing are the beautiful vocals of
Phil Lynnott. Was it not for the fact that as a band Saviours
kicks plenty of ass, this could have sounded ridiculous. But it
doesn’t. In fact, is quite the opposite.
MySpace
Saviours Blog
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