Music to drop bombs to.
Those of you that have read my biog. or previous articles, will know that I have a little thing for a certain blues guitarist; Jon Spencer. Undoubtedly my favourite band is Boss Hog, I love The (Jon Spencer) Blues Explosion and I even married my husband as he beared an uncanny resemblance to him (you gotta love a man in make-up!). As far as I'm concerned, Jon Spencer is God. So when The Sound Exploson arrived through my letterbox, the similarity of the groups' names did not go unnoticed. These guys must be incredibly cocksure I thought and perhaps by letting me review them (and any other Blues Explosion fans) they'd set themselves up for a fall. Mr Spencer's boots are, in my humble opinion, huge shoes to fill. Can The Sound Explosion deliver the goods?
"Eleven aural hand grenades of teenage sex punk destruction - the pin is between the teeth and this baby is ready to blow!!" the accompanying press-release informs me. "Traveller Man" starts with some 20 seconds of feedback before a gutsy, throttley guitar lick ensues, and let's just say that my ears perked up. "Teenage sex punk destruction" really doesn't do The Sound Explosion justice. They are much more sophisticated than the two minute two-chord songs that punk employs. Dirty, ballsy licks with the lyrics to match. Words about life...how it really is, albeit with a sinister edge that I find surprising from a group who are around 17/18 years old. You'd hope that they're still too fresh faced to have been marred and tainted by all the shit the world has to offer. Their lyrics suggest otherwise or instead an incredibly acute perception of it all.
These guys are young, and fair play, because they've reached a maturity with their songwriting that many bands never achieve. It's all of the little touches you see. The siren wailing subtley through "Looking At You". Throaty growls or the warm fuzzy timbre of a megaphone juxraposed against some decent bluesy vox and harmonies. "Shotgun of Love" and "Krystal" demonstrate their mastering of both the song and the infernal clash of a punk number.
The Sound Explosion is a stating-the-bloody-obvious sort of name, but then why not? At least this album does exactly what it says on the tin. This is a celebration of all things sonic. OK, so it's hooky enough to get airplay as with the single "Street Freak". Raw enough to please the rock 'n' roll snobs, (see "Time After Time"), but it's also very clever. Here is a band who are continually exploring and mastering their individual instruments. I'm not just talking about the music itself, but rather the really important stuff that too many bands forget: The differing tones of the guitars only achieved by really playing about and taking the time getting to know all about one's amp. Mic. technique, again only mastered via trial and error.
More than anything I'm struck by the composition of this album. Here is a group who have a natural flair for songwriting. Really understanding phrasing and how important the structure of a song is. They are far too bluesy to just be confined to being punk, but Jon Spencer's Blues Explosion they ain't. And that's a compliment! This is not some parody of a band that's gone before. Here is a group with a new sound and one that they really own. To top it all off, their reputation for playing live precedes them. Inclined to ditching the performance area for running amok in the audience. Alongside the impeccable hair-dos and pointy shoes, customised for skidding across the stage, it would appear that The Sound Explosion have got it all. They've got to be the coolest thing to have ever come out of Newcastle.
Having just finished touring supporting the Alamos and previous slots alongside Hell is For Heroes, The Paddingtons and the 5678s, you get the distinct impression that those same bands will be playing support slots for The Sound Explosion in the wake of their eponymous debut CD. Guitar Nazis poised to assault the UK with a Blitzkreig of blues. A bowel loosening barrage of noise rumbling so deep within that hitting 9 on the Richter scale, the aftershocks alone will knock you off your feet and the impact felt the world over.
So, if like me, you're numb to the entire world. An over exposure to horrifying news items, a constant supposed threat of terrorism and Bush, Blair and cronies having employed so many shock tactics that you're immune to it all. There's nothing left to shake you to your very core, I suggest you get this album, turn it up to eleven and let The Sound Explosion do the rest.