The Jokers: Hurricane

A few rock’n’roll aces here!

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You can tell where The Jokers get their chops, as soon as Run4Cover dashes round the corner. It’s the allure of 70s British hard rock, with occasional nods towards the previous decade. And, keeping a distinct live attitude makes Hurricane an inviting breeze.

The Jokers mix influences from The Faces, Humble Pie and The Yardbirds, striking a rich vein with the soul flame on Her Word Is Love and the funky patch on She’s On Fire. Angel and Everywhere I Go, meantime, dip the oar into Thunder territory, with a mid-tempo, gravelly timbre, and this rolls into the punchy pace of Lockdown.

There are a few dips, though. The acoustic Summer Time and the maudlin Dream meander with little purpose, while Rocketman sounds a shade tired. But these downturns are overcome by Salvation, the best track here, laced with a dishevelled elegance. These Jokers ought to be taken seriously.

Malcolm Dome
Malcolm Dome

Malcolm Dome had an illustrious and celebrated career which stretched back to working for Record Mirror magazine in the late 70s and Metal Fury in the early 80s before joining Kerrang! at its launch in 1981. His first book, Encyclopedia Metallica, published in 1981, may have been the inspiration for the name of a certain band formed that same year. Dome is also credited with inventing the term "thrash metal" while writing about the Anthrax song Metal Thrashing Mad in 1984. With the launch of Classic Rock magazine in 1998 he became involved with that title, sister magazine Metal Hammer, and was a contributor to Prog magazine since its inception in 2009. He died in 2021.