The Last Straw– Brought To Life
http://www.thelaststrawrocks.com/
Rating: A
God I love it when these shit hot new bands today show they’ve
done their homework. Which is exactly what The Last Straw, a new
group out of Nashville Tennessee has done on their debut album
Brought To Life. By channeling the vintage sound and feel
of 70's Southern rock, soul and R&B, these five young men come
across more like seasoned veterans than wet behind the ear
rookies making their first album.
The powerful twin guitar tandem of Kyle Daniels (who also
handles the lead vocals) and Quincey Meeks on "Which Way To Go",
"Soul On Fire" and "Rock n' Roll Queen" thoroughly convinced me
that these guys were probably listening to bands like The Allman
Brothers as soon as they were able to reach the turntable. The
sweet 'n warm Hammond B-3 playing of Adam Botner fleshes out the
sound perfectly all over this record as the band puts together a
winning formula that combines straight ahead, bluesy rockers
with a couple of superb, reflective ballads. "Take A Ride",
"Down The Line" and "You Betta Believe" are further proof that
these musicians are already masters at crafting songs that are
packed to the gills with memorable melodies and hooks. The
ballads "Be Here Tonight", "Everything But You" and "Good To Be
Alive" are highlighted by Kyle’s soulful vocals. When he sings
about the sky looking better down in Tennessee on "Good To Be
Alive" you damn well believe it, regardless of whether you've
been there and witnessed it for yourself or not.
The Last Straw has arrived on the scene in a big way with this
first album. Like I said at the top of the review its great to
see a band that has done their homework, studied the greats of
the past, and parlayed that into their own unique sound. If
you’re already a fan of bands like The Allman Borothers, The
Black Crowes and The North Mississippi All-Stars then you’re
definitely going to want to hear what The Last Straw has to
offer.
-Ryan Sparks
