By Monk
Hailing from Ireland’s ocean and wind swept Atlantic coastline, this alt-rock quartet first came to our attention at the turn of the year, when they demonstrated just how far they had come in a relatively short time by earning one of our coveted #SinglesClub #DailyPick slots. Little did we know that our selection was actually the fourth single to be uplifted from this, their debut album, but it perhaps demonstrated the vibrancy and productive nature of the Irish nature scene that not even a website that strives to be as plugged in as ourselves can keep on top of the vibrant productivity (sic) of its creators, never mind the sheer diversity of sounds and vibes being produced…
As they ‘Unleash The Beast’ on the opening track, it cannot be helped but draw immediate comparisons with Alter Bridge and, more especially, Mark Tremonti’s self-titled side project, as well as with commercial grunge giants such as Soundgarden: these are influences which the band wear openly on their sleeves, proudly so, and why not? The main question to be asked in such circumstances is can they bring their own ingredients to the recipe and mix things up to serve up their own delicious dish, or will they just come across like a discounted own brand supermarket copycat?
The answer, thankfully, is very much in the former camp, as DJ O’Sullivan and co step up to the table and concoct a heady brew of their own interpretation, taking the basics which have been presented to them and adding their own distinctive flavours, spicing things up with as much aplomb as the chef at my local Indian can put into into his signature jalfrezi.
While the opening track slowly builds both the anticipation for what is to come, and the atmosphere which the opus overall evokes, the rapid fire opening salvo of ‘Sorceress Of Lies’ crashes over you like a sonic tsunami, drawing you deep into its entrancement with aplomb and vigour, its winding riff and dynamic melody counterpointed by the closest thing to blastbeats you are likely to here on an album of this nature.
‘Make A Life Again’ introduces subtle elements of Arabic and Indian folk music into this eclectic sonic mix, intertwining themselves around the main Creed-esque vibe before ‘Lead The Way’ introduces huge, soaring multi-part vocal harmonies of the kind that would make Styx or Toto wish they had explored the heavier end of the musical spectrum.
We ‘Face The Truth’ that there is much more goodness to come as we head into the second half, and this is exemplified by the huge title track, with its growling, tumbling riff and punchy delivery, coupled with the album’s most laconic vocal performance and an absolutely searing solo, which itself is made all the more impressive by its deliberate brevity.
Most recent single ‘See How You’ve Come So Far’ and ‘Inside’ serve as an almost symbiotic duotych to close the album out, encapsulating all of the elements which have preceded them in terms of their combination of the combination of mood-changing melodies and dynamic, dramatic overtones.
It definitely has been worth taking a deep dive into this previously unknown world and opening the (XIII) doors to this thoroughly enjoyable and cohesive debut.
- ‘Into The Unknown‘ is out now.
- XIII Doors support Michael Schenker in Dublin and Belfast in May and Shiraz Lane in June, in between appearances at the Loverocks and Wildfire festivals:
