You’ve got to admire any band with ambition these days especially if they are prepared to pin their colours to the wall and release their music on vinyl, that most venerable of rock music formats. Duly, and as if this was the way God – or the Devil - intended it to be, Glasgow proud and loud rock duo Velvetbomb have taken a confident step on the rocky road to stardom.
With a duo, there is a limit to the sonic sorcery that you can pull off and it is true that Velvetbomb aren’t big on surprises in that area. However, they more than adequately compensate for that by seasoning all their songs with the maximum amount of power chords, a dash of sleaze and a surprising sprinkle of theatrical intent.
Song time. “Bullet to The Brain” sets the tone for the six tracks and it provides plenty of evidence of the commercial ambition that a rock band needs these days while “Poison Tongue” shuffles through at a similarly smart pace whilst highlighting that there is style as well as substance here.
“Lucifer” is altogether more theatrical in presentation and, while the big guy from down under is always a popular subject for those whose guitars are forever entangled with black biker jackets, Velvetbomb, in lyrical terms at least, are way closer to investigating internal torment than the public work of the tormenter. In contrast, “White Line Sister” could almost be considered a pop song – or a pop song overdosed on steroids anyway - such is the intoxication of its punch the air vibe.
So, whilst never pushing the genre to the limit, Velvetbomb nonetheless put their best foot in the best boots forward and head off in what is certainly the right direction for them. Their six track EP comes in a nice gatefold sleeve and is available from their website.