Posted on: March 15, 2009 Posted by: anfnewsacct Comments: 0

The BeatPreachers play a blues-influenced brand of rock that tries to put itself alongside the seventies set of Detroit rock but comes off as a band that is a lot of form but little in the way of substance. With “Denied”, the band bashes through a track in less than two and a half minutes, but there is nothing in the way of artistic development for individuals to really cut their teeth on. More in the way of distortion is realized for “Where Is The Love?”; the vocals of the band during the track really seem to take the Iggy Pop worship even further. The band does score something in the way of a small victory during the track in that they can insert their hooks into listeners, but the same sort of over-repetitious style really befalls the band during the song.

The arrangements during “Find My Way” seem to have a more direct line of influence between the blues and their brand of rock, and shows something small in the way of evolution for The BeatPreachers. In this track, there are hints of Neil Young that make their first influence alongside the same influences that started off the disc.

In The BeatPreachers’ defense, I could conceivably hear a track like “Fid My Way” on classic rock radio; but I have to make the caveat here that much of what is played on classic rock does not really push the limits of music. So, each of the songs on this self-titled LP really follow the same formula, allowing for listeners to really groove on a BeatPreachers style throughout. This means that an individual can cut their teeth on the very Rolling Stones-influenced “Black Water”; the band is there for all those individuals who like the biggest stars in classic rock but what desperately to say they listen to modern music. This is not sixties music regrooved to have some context in the current period, but rather a 2005 band that eschews anything current to come up with this style. The songs here may be catchy throughout on this disc, but there seems to be a lack of discussion with music fans on this album; this is purely for those audiophiles that want to be placated for a few minutes. While there is no need to recast their style, perhaps The BeatPreachers could come up with some arrangements for their next album that really involve a higher amount of skill than the fare that is common on this album.

Top Tracks: Black Water, Oh Yeah

Rating: 5.3/10

[JMcQ]

The BeatPreachers – S/T / 2005 Knife Fight / 10 Tracks / http://www.thebeatpreachers.com / Reviewed 08 February 2006

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