CHARLOTTE — Medusa Groove (review)

CHARLOTTE — Medusa Groove album cover Album · 2010 · Hard Rock Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
Stephen
Not many bands were dare enough to play with early 70s rock which heavily infused by blues especially when the 80s decade was coming to an end where commercial hard rock and pop-driven melodies are daily headlines. Badlands and Kingdom Come are two well-known acts that chose this path, and sprung out of nowhere, here we have Charlotte, grooving in the same alley with them and clearly inspired by the father of bluesy hard rock, Led Zeppelin. If not because of the magical hands of Eonian, "Medusa Groove" will forever be unheard, but today, what you read here and probably that disc you're holding now, is a true precious legacy of their talent and sweat during 1988-1992.

The opening track welcomes you with a distinctive Zeppelin riffs dance, rolled with midtempo beat and baritone singing, "Medusa Groove" is a killer. "Little Devils" started slow, the doomy atmosphere began crawling in, and soon the Kingdom Come-meets-The Cult rhythm wrapped up quickly to create a great hard rock piece. "Miss Necrophilia" kicks with the same style, might be weaker than "Devils" but the solos are better. "She Get It Up" and "Got Love On The Line" raises the tempo, the arrangement is perfectly done, sure newbies can't do anything as great as these, my two personal faves and perhaps the best. "Changes" has an unusual chord sequence for a power ballad and Eric Ganz' vocal really shines here, he takes himself to the next level. "Ocean of Love And Mercy" surprised me with a beautiful sax solo in a mid-paced hard rock, good one.

I found myself not liking several tracks such as "Woman Behind The Eyes", "Roadhouse of Love", or the funk-driven "Invisible Man", but all in all, "Medusa Groove" is a solid find by the label and I'm glad I have a chance to listen to this lost gem. The production is good but don't expect anything as good as the real 2010 records, these one mostly came from the past, so that's still very much acceptable to me. Long story short, if you're into blues-drenched hard rock / heavy metal and Led Zeppelin, Badlands, Great White, or Kingdom Come are one of your fave bands, then divert all your attention to this one. A neat release that deserved a million copy sales!
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