By Monk

While the name Armin Sabol may not be familiar to many ÜR readers, he is one of the icons of the German music scene, and his contribution to the global music scene undoubtedly will spark instant recognition. With a career stretching back 45 years, to his days in a blues-rock band by the name of Shiva – which also featured a certain Mat Sinner on bass – he has dabbled in metal (as producer for the likes of Rage and Sinner), pop (as a session musician for Hazel O’Connor, among many others), dance and even TV scores ( he has contributed to series such as ‘The Mentalist’, ‘Storage Wars’, ‘Auction Hunters’ and, most recently, ‘The Purge’). Now he has returned to his love of the guitar, and big crunching riffs, with this, his debut solo offering.

Kicking off with the declarative lead single, ‘Got Her In A Bag’, Sabol delivers a set of tunes that are heavy on the bottom end, packed to the brim with caustic acidity and impassioned delivery. Lying somewhere twixt delta blues fury and ZZ Top-style melody (as emphasized on his faithful cover of ‘Sharp Dressed Man’), Sabol’s style is laconic, and all the more impressive for being so. His deep, lush vocals sound like a barrel-aged malt whiskey: rough on the initial sip, but oh so smooth with the aftertaste, with his rich timbre perfectly matching that of his dense guitar style.

With a pedigree that stretches back five decades, there can be no doubt that Sabol is far from a ‘One Trick Pony’, and on the evidence of this fine collection, he certain isn’t ‘Going Down’ anytime soon, but definitely is ‘Ready To Roll’ and take us back to the old school. If you like your blues rock delivered with a gruff edge, a la Kris Barras et al, rather than the sort of silky cappuccino-coloured interpretations delivered by the likes of Joe Bonamassa, then ‘Back In Blue’ is definitely the album for you (sic). This house is gonna be rockin’ to this set for some time to come…

  • ‘Back In Blue’ is released on 1 April. You can get your copy HERE.

www.facebook.com/Armin-Sabol

  • All content © Über Rock. Not to be reproduced in part or in whole without the express written permission of Über Rock.