Sleazy rock n roll action.
Having once spent a weekend in Barnsley (a long, long story) it wasn't a place that struck me as being the home of rock n roll. Local band GU Medicine may not claim it's the home of rock n roll either but they do claim to be inspired by heaviness, filth and depravity and seem proud of dragging themselves up from the local gutters.
'Saints of Excess' is the bands second album and is a non-stop sleazy rocker which never gives the listener a chance to catch breath, such is the relentless pace and power of the record.
Comparisons with Queens Of The Stone Age are heading in the right direction, and although GU Medicine are lacking in comparison to Josh Homme's troubadours, the spirit is alive and kicking and adds to a few other elements to the mix. Naturally, the guitars feature high in the mix with the riffs spitting out at the top end with everything else appearing low and murky in comparison.
Opener 'A Meeting With Foul Play' hints at the ferocious music to come and the vocals have that hint of cheekiness that indicates that the band aren't too pompous. Sure, the screams and call to the arms is prevalent throughout the track but the pay-off line in the chorus lightens the tone somewhat.
Which is all well and good but over the course of the album, there isn't much deviation from this pattern. Some of the tracks start low and turn up, some of the tracks start loud and drop down for a spell but the tracks all hurtle by in shape or another. The live show is likely to be a frenetic bundle of fun but on record but it comes across as a bit too similar for non fans to get fully into the swing of.
'The Girl From Chittagong' certainly lives up to the titles impression with the band extolling the virtues of a lady friend of theirs and how sometimes they just need that high class whore. As they say, they can take the boys out of Barnsley but you can't take the Barnsley out of the boys. Depending on your take on feminism this track may humour or appal you but musically, it bears no difference to any of the other tracks available.
And annoyingly, the album seems like a missed opportunity. There is talent in abundance in GU Medicine but without branching out or offering up something different at times, the band is unlikely to branch out and find new fan bases. In all honesty though, its likely that the boys of GU Medicine aren't too concerned with that prospect, as long as they get to live it up and party every day, its likely they'd be happy.
And surely that's the important thing.