I had high hopes for this record; talks of ‘juke joints’ and the ‘essence of the original soul movement’ got me quite excited. The dapper looking cats who make up Vintage Trouble certainly look like they could belt out some soulful sounding vintage rhythm ‘n’ blues but unfortunately what’s on offer on The Bomb Shelter Sessions is some standardised blues rock with a, dare I say it – ‘funky’ edge.
Blues Hand Me Down retains none of the hysteric energy that sent everyone wild on the Jools Holland Show, it’s produced rock guitar tones funkin’ it up are revealed for what they are, and Ty Taylors’ James Brown-esque screams seem constrained somehow. Cleaner guitar tones work better for Vintage Trouble on their second track Still And Always Will, the funk rock barometer dropping down a few thankful notches but still the over produced engineering leaves the song sounding flat.
Gracefully marks the start of one of the many softer songs on the album, a heart felt and soulful number in which Taylors vocals take precedent momentarily, before a cheesy melodic rock solo permeates the track unnecessarily. Then it’s back to bar room blues-rock for You Better Believe It, cue harmonica, sigh. Not Alright By Me draws the listener into some earnest lyrical content and it’s starts to become clear that the slower soulful songs on The Bomb Shelter Sessions are getting closer to hitting the mark, Taylors’ pipes appear more at home crooning like some kind of modern day Sam Cooke rather than attempting to front a white man blues band.
The production is far too clean on The Bomb Shelter Sessions, blatantly so on the rock numbers and the soul/rock combo fails to work in this scenario. It’s not an easy task combining the two genres, The Bellrays pull it off with style but Vintage Trouble have struggled on their debut album. All accounts point to them being a killer live act but on The Bomb Shelter Sessions their sound is overproduced, inconsistent and the few gems that do shine through, have their sheen dulled profusely by the mediocrity of the remaining tracks.
BY KRYSTAL MAYNARD
Best Track: Gracefully
If You Like These, You’ll Like This: THE BELLRAYS, THE DIRTBOMBS
In A Word: Overproduced
