Music reviews. CD reviews. Critically hip!

Groovy guitar, soulful bass and sincere singing make Roll Away a good debut album for Back Door Slam, composed of Davy Knowles (vocals, guitar), Adam Jones (bass) and Ross Doyle (drums). The band clearly is going for a high energy blues rocking sound and it suits them well. With splashes of folk and some vintage, classic rock, Back Door Slam is an interesting band to keep an eye on. If Los Lonely Boys can make it on the radio (no offense to them, just never understood the hype), I don’t see why these guys can’t take their rightful place on the airwaves. Their music almost sounds of another, older era which could be their downfall to some ears.

The solos galore are refreshing, especially in a world with three minute singles and jumpy choruses. Although I was never a blues aficionado or admirer, these guys get it right and sound right at home. I especially love the guitar work; job well done there. Come Home is a great opening track right from the penetrating bass and Gotta Leave is a brilliant example of the blues with some rocking guitar work by Knowles as well as Too Late.Takes a Real Man and It’ll All Come Around especially have a classic rock feel instrumentally.

The more acoustic ballad Stay is my favorite track as it reminds me of Bob Seger’s classic live track Turn the Page in a way. Roll Away is also a nice work acoustically and very tender.

The only downside is sometimes they feel to be leaning on the country side, which I never really could appreciate as a particular genre. Sometimes as a whole, the album can also get a bit boring and should be taken in appropriate doses. I am still however, highly impressed at the band’s ability to bring back some old school rock and mesh it with some classic blues. Their challenge will be to overcome sounding “stale” and keeping it fresh while still sticking to their true musical vibe.

If you’re feeling blue and want to rock out to some good old fashioned blues with a vintage tilt, definitely check out Back Door Slam. It’ll be interesting to see what these guys produce next with their classic musical taste.