STYLE: Rock RATING OUR PRODUCT CODE: 94267-16613 LABEL: Independent FORMAT: CD Album ITEMS: 1
Reviewed by Paul Kerslake
These are a rock four piece from West Virginia who are the latest in a long line of acts to use the phrase Sons Of Thunder as their name. This band's mission statement is "Transformation of a nation, region by region, by sharing Christ through music and testimonies" and they offer full on rock with the opener "Status Quo" featuring layered distorted guitars, double bass drumming and thudding bass. The vocals, provided by band leader Joe Lycan, are surprisingly melodic and clear in comparison. Lyrically, the songs all reflect the mission statement and are clearly vertically and biblically based. "River Of Love" is a nice funk rock track with a great groove. However, they fall into far too many dated rock clichés throughout the record, every song having a guitar solo or three that generally go on too long, the drummer playing too many fills and even the album artwork, with its smoking horse's skull and a cross for the "T" in thunder is pretty stereotyped. So, though these are a clearly talented group of musicians with a burden to reach the lost, for their next album they will need a producer able to hone the sum of their parts to raise it above the average music presented here.
The opinions expressed in this article are
not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed
views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may
not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a
later date.
Interested in reviewing music? Find out
more here.