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Compelling listening

When a band just appear out of left field and disrupt (in a good way of course) your whole view of music - that's a great feeling right? Well once you indulge in Blues Pills you'll definitely get a hint of this, as their blend of groove, blues and unbelievable vocals make this one of 2014's absolute must buys. The Swedish four piece sound like they've come out of a whiskey soaked Blues bar in New Orleans, and it is this authenticity to the sound at least which makes this album so good.

The first couple of tracks High Class Woman, Ain't No Change and Jupiter instantly set you on the path of unrelenting hard blues rock - with simple catchy riffs merging into impromptu jams galore, this is just a really great record to kick back and just embrace. The band have certainly got it nailed down, but what of the vocals? Well they're even better! Comparisons to Janis Joplin are not far off at all when it comes to listening to Elin Larsson's voice soaring throughout the record, but especially on Black Smoke which stops and starts between sombre slower moments and an explosion of groove and power, each moment complimented beautifully by Elin's vocals. There are not too many bands around at the moment who sound like Blues Pills; especially the case when you look at the label they're signed to (Nuclear Blast) but it feels like a refreshing change when listening. Of course, it doesn't win any points for real stand out originality, but they've put their own twist on what is essentially a 'vintage' sound and frankly it's done really well. It's not that it's just blues fuelled rock; with influences taken from the likes of Black Sabbath and Deep Purple it gets real heavy at points.

In comparison to previous releases, it is very similar, but with this album they've really honed it in. It will almost certainly be an experience hearing a lot of these tracks live, so it is well worth getting down to a show should a tour be announced shortly. For the moment though, this is definitely one of those well worth picking up and an album you should really allow yourself to be engrossed by - compelling listening.