SPIRITUAL BEGGARS — Sunrise To Sundown (review)

SPIRITUAL BEGGARS — Sunrise To Sundown album cover Album · 2016 · Stoner Rock Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
Nightfly
Spiritual Beggars were formed by Michael Amott in 1994 in the time between leaving death metal band Carcass and his next death metal band Arch Enemy. Despite being better known for his contribution to melodic death metal Spiritual Beggars gave him a vehicle for his love of 70’s style hard rock.

Originally labelled as a stoner/ hard rock band, in recent years, particularly this and previous album “Earth Blues”, the band really displays very little stoner elements in their sound. Anyone with a love of David Coverdale era Deep Purple will find much to enjoy on “Sunrise To Sundown”, the bands ninth studio album. It’s not their best, that honour going to 2000’s “Ad Astra” or even “Earth Blues. It’s not their heaviest either but it wins on sheer consistency with barely a weak moment full of the kind of Hammond organ drenched rock that Purple used to (and still do occasionally) churn out.

Michael Amott’s playing is tastefully restrained – heavy but if you didn’t know you wouldn’t associate him as the same guy who’s responsible for much of the blistering guitar work in Arch Enemy. Former Opeth keyboard man Per Wilberg is the perfect foil for him making a team almost as effective as Jon Lord and Ritchie Blackmore. Apollo Panthanasio is also the ideal vocalist for a band of this ilk, having a register not unlike David Coverdale.

Despite being immediately likeable the album does take a few listens for the gems to shine through. It doesn’t get any better than the uptempo Rainbow-ish “What Doesn’t Kill You” and the slower paced but driving riffs on “Hard Road” and “No Man’s Land”, both aided, like much of the album by compelling melodies too.

If you’ve not checked out Spiritual Beggars yet and 70’s hard rock is your thing I suggest you do so pronto and “Sunrise To Sundown” wouldn’t be a bad place to start.
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