England, Riff rock, Power trio, Psychedelic, Blues rock, frantic solos.... I'm sure that at least half of those elements already awake your interest ! This is in six points what could characterize the best this debut album from STUBB, released this week by a new label, whose name alone is enough to warm you up a few degrees in these cold winter times : SuperHotRecords.
Recorded in London, this was mixed and mastered by Tony Reed (Stone Axe, Mos Generator) who also worked a bit later in 2011 on the new St Vitus... The late 60's/early 70's vibes are perfectly restored with a very LIVE sound; STUBB plays straight, warm and fuzzy short songs, but not only I would say... If most of the songs are thick, powerful and heavy, the trio likes to slow down the tempo too, "crosses you bear" and "crying river" show indeed a Folkish sensibility through mellow melodies and luminous singing. But, of course the main purpose of the guys is the RIFF and on that point, they have a bunch of psychedelic notes to offer you with a large use of wah-wah...
Starting by the 1st song "Road" which could have easily appeared on "gods and goddesses" from B.B., revealing as you've guessed an obvious Hendrixian vibe ! Other great songs like "scale the mountain", "soul mover" or "galloping horses" are excellent pieces full of groove and swinging blues.
It's not because the band takes large influences in HENDRIX, CREAM or LED ZEPPELIN that it could not surprise the listener, for example solos are pretty oustanding, not systematically placed where we await them, also some rythmics sound so heavy and powerful that it could be on the next SIGIRIYA !!!
If the vocals aren't the strongest force of the band (backing vocals especially), I think they are pretty good and fit well with the straightness of the overall; some guys can sing effortlessly like Robert Plant or Ozzy Osbourne, some can not but are certainly more inclined to improve in getting a distinctive style...
It became hardly predictable to say if a band more than another could be a new rising star, but STUBB offers here a very pleasant debut album that should not remain unnoticed, so don't waste time to discover this english gem (moreover this is a "name your price" download) !
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