The past was not a foreign country for Stone Axe. In fact, during the band’s short existence between 2008 to 2011, the 1970s were very much their home, their castle, their safe space.
Comprising multi-instrumentalist Tony Reed and singer Dru Brinkerhoff, Stone Axe released two albums of lovingly crafted classic rock, and this collection of waifs and strays from their tenure similarly bursts with adoration for rock’n’roll as traditional and warming as a plate of bangers and mash.
Led Zeppelin, AC/DC and Free haunt the grooves of a record clearly intended to be played on vinyl. Brinkerhoff belts out tales of mysticism and mermaids, nature and lust, while Reed forms a one-man power trio to duel with his own guitar on gutsy opener Fell On Deaf Ears, peppering it all with a barrage of earthy drums.
A paean to rock’s past, it’s almost fitting that the band themselves are now confined to the history they love so much.
