Welcome to the latest edition of Classic Rock's Tracks Of The Week, where new faces and unknowns rub shoulders with the big fish of rock'n'roll. The results of last week's poll certainly reflect this. Have a look at the bands you voted into your top three here:
3. Ghost - Dance Macabre (Carpenter Brut Remix)
2. Clutch - In Walks Barbarella
1. Those Damn Crowes - Don't Give A Damn
Congratulations to Those Damn Crows, followed closely by Clutch and then Ghost in third place. Check out their winning single here, then get stuck into this week's list of new rock goodies. And don't forget to vote for your favourite at the end. Bon appetit!
Vodun - New Doom
In a scene that can sometimes feel rather full of denim, leather and tastefully muted colour tones, Vodun make the kind of enigmatic, explosive impression that makes you sit up and pay attention. On this latest cut from the Ascend pie (i.e. their hard-hitting second album) Chantal, Zel and Linz are joined by Turbowolf singer Chris Georgiadis. The music’s worldly and commanding, they look amazing...what’s not to love?
The Vintage Caravan - Reset
What's the best way to "reset your mind"? Eat pizza, lose your shit in an arcade, get into some sort of sword fight ... To be honest it all got a little hazy in the latter stages of the Icelandic classic rockers' new video, but we enjoyed the ride – and the chugging, riffy fuzz therein. Check out this, and more, on their new album Gateways.
Laura Jane Grace & The Devouring Mothers - Apocalypse Now (& Later)
Chiefly known as the lead singer/guitarist of punked up rockers Against Me!, Laura Jane Grace takes a detour into pensive, acoustic-based tones with this new track from her solo outfit. With its worldly nods to Tom Petty and gritty yet warming brand of Americana, we're just sorry that it ends after little more than two minutes. Still, its an inviting vignette to whet our appetites for the upcoming album, Bought To Rot, set for release via rootsy label Bloodshot Records.
Hardcore Superstar - AD/HD
The Swedish sleaze rock dudes come bearing a catchy new fistful of machine gun riffs and odes to some fraught personal demons (the clue's in the title). Topped with the kind of cheerfully face-pummelling chorus so full of sugar and Red Bull it might just fizz off into oblivion. Resistance is futile, so sit back and enjoy – it's relentless, yes, but knows when to pull back as well.
Bob Russell - Rocking In The Rain
Back in the day Russell opened up for the likes of Alice Cooper, The Guess Who, New York Dolls and many others. Before that he grew up flitting between England and Chicago, jamming with musicians on both side of the Atlantic; which clearly informed his bluesy playing, to flattering effect, as we see here. He's since done studio work throughout Chicago, and now has turned his attention to his own music, streamlining years of experience into classy slices (even if it cuts out a little abruptly at the end).
The Pineapple Thief - Try As I Might
Bruce Soord and co return with a brooding, quality taste of their upcoming album, Dissolution – this time accompanied by a compellingly cinematic new video, in which Soord undergoes some sort of eye surgery and winds up in beautiful scenery in a hospital gown (anyone who's seen The Lobster may feel a slight sense of deja vu, in a creepy but good way...). Gnarly and progressive yet always firmly rooted in melody, with Porcupine Tree-esque hints woven in (unsurprisingly, with former PT man Gavin Harrison on drums), it's an inviting, assured brand of prog 'n pop.
Jared James Nichols - End Of Time
The Wisconsin-born blues singer/guitarist comes bearing one of the highlights from his latest album, Black Magic – complete with deftly stylish soloing, satisfying howls and enough animated, shaggy-haired head-bobbing to rival the cast of Sesame Street. Good, down n' dirty blues rock, intercut here with footage from cheap 80s Mad Max ripoffs, there's much here to enjoy.
Salvation Jane - Cortez
"Lyrically influenced by the cult TV show American Horror Story, ‘Cortez’, is a dark, twisted track, with a video to match," reads their press material. It's a intriguing, accurate introduction this riffy, aggressive hybrid of hard rock, nu wave and garage blues touches – flanked by stylishly dressed scenes of occult-y hoodoo. If this is how their dark side looks, we like it.
