Kev Rowland
2016 saw the release of the second album from Blues Pills, their first with new drummer André Kvarnström. They also added quite a few guests to the album, with Mellotron, organ, piano and xylophone adding to their sound. In many ways, this is even more like the early Seventies, as the additional instrumentation brings it all together, and the sounds being deployed were so key to that time. Since the debut they had been touring, and there is a real confidence to the vocals especially, that only comes from playing together. They have brought together some singers to provide backing vocals this time, and when they are used they seem to lift Elin so that she is even more passionate, raw, and Janis-like.
They used the same cover artist as before, Marijke Koger-Dunham, who has worked in the past with groups like The Beatles and Cream – in fact, the original design was more than fifty years old! By also using the same producer, Don Alsterberg, there is a strong continuity in so many ways, with the sound yet again thick and strong – almost a physical force, yet the different keyboards and backing vocals show a band that are growing in so many ways. Of the two, I probably prefer the debut, just because that is a touch more raw and basic, and this is more polished and refined, but is still a damn fine listen.
This is real music, music with soul and heart, something that many record company execs wouldn’t recognise if it was handed to them on a platter, so all power to Nuclear Blast for recognising just how special this band is. Highly, highly recommended