The sons of Alabama are back ! If you never heard of MAYLENE & THE SONS OF DISASTER before, let me give you 3 reasons to like them : they’re crazy, they’re numerous and they play some heavy mix of Lynyrd Skynyrd and ZZ Top. Some while ago, the Sons Of Disaster used to frantically kick in haystacks with their alcoholized moshpit music, but it looks like being in their 30’s made them calm things down a little bit, because this 4th record is way more chilled than everything they have done before. But don’t worry, they still haven’t ran out of Jack Daniel’s ! MATSOD rocks !
Damn, we were so used to see the guys breaking havoc with that spirit of young redneck rebels who are so much craving for distortion and heaviness… Don’t get fooled people, even if In Dead We Dream is completely in that vein, it doesn’t mean they’re back to burn the barn ! Actually, Skynyrd’s furious kids have learnt a lot from their adoptive fathers, that’s why this album has been made in a total southern rock spirit… You heard me : not metal. ROCK.
Let it be known, “IV” is unquestionably a pure chain of rock hits : the songs spread the Word (“amen !”) with choruses that are so catchy that we easily let ourselves go, singing along with arms up in the air and a total blissfully happy and dumb smile on the face (Sunday’s Mass style). When it comes to sturdy rock, the best song remains Killing Me Slow (you will probably feel the need to create havoc with this one), followed by cool ones like Save Me and Faith Healer (Bring Me Down). As for the heavier stuff, I can quote the awesome Open Your Eyes, Fate Games, Never Enough, Cat’s Walk (Motörhead !!!), but I doubt this small amount of metal-ish tracks would satisfy the hardcore fans of the time when MATSOD used to blast stormy southern metalcore ? The conversion to the band’s new “nice rock” should be hard for some of them…
As far as I’m concerned, I’m usually not fond of corny ballads, but I have no choice but getting seduced by THEIR power ballads, ’cause frankly : they have a kind of gift for that ! Let’s enjoy the soft singing of Come For You, the nostalgic walk under the moonlight on Drought of ’85, but most of all keep your ears wide open because Taking On Water is without a doubt the most beautiful song I’ve heard from the band. This thrilling bridge, when Dallas Taylor’s voice subtly turns raw and starts to sound like Bob Mould’s (Hüsker Dü), it ‘s just MAJESTIC.
Disregarding the obvious fact that MAYLENE & THE SONS OF DISASTER haven’t clearly re-invented the wheel with “IV” , the final result sounds really good because it’s a concentrate of perfect-sounding southern hard rock riffs. It brings us back to the classic bands of the 90’s, but… with the band’s modern and live wire approach, which makes all the difference ! AMEN MAYLENE !
ARTIST : Maylene & The Sons Of Disaster
ALBUM : “IV”
RELEASE DATE : September 2011
LABEL : Ferret Records
Notation : ✩✩✩✩
LET’S SNEAK A PEAK AT THEIR LATEST TOUR STORIES…
Last modified: 16 October 2013
