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Fronted by electric washboard-toting powerhouse Lori Paradis, Ontario band Sulfur City have unleashed a speaker-shredding blues-rock tornado with Talking Loud, which sits beautifully with labelmates the Black Keys but also harbours an intoxicating, multi-hued diversity.

Former truck driver Paradis towers throughout, evoking Joplin, Slick and even Patti Smith on full-tilt blasters such as Whispers and Raise The Hammer; early 70s-style conscious blues-rock on War Going On; and shining on moody, swirling psych ballad One Day In June.

The band’s raging but luminescent dynamic, vividly captured by producer Dale Morningstar, gains extra depth through Keith Breit’s keyboards. In the words of an old jazz correspondent, this band “slices so much ass the room is waist-deep in ass”. We say a new star has come among us.

Kris Needs is a British journalist and author, known for writings on music from the 1970s onwards. Previously secretary of the Mott The Hoople fan club, he became editor of ZigZag in 1977 and has written biographies of stars including Primal Scream, Joe Strummer and Keith Richards. He's also written for MOJO, Record Collector, Classic Rock, Prog, Electronic Sound, Vive Le Rock and Shindig!