Album, Single and EP Reviews


 

 

  Pain & Other Simple Pleasures by The Bloodshot Gamblers


Pain & Other Simple Pleasures cover art

Artist: The Bloodshot Gamblers
Title: Pain & Other Simple Pleasures
Catalogue Number: Demon Deluxe DD627
Review Format: CD
Release Year: 2009



Time for some damage to the old eardrums methinks. The Bloodshot Gamblers - consisting of Hillbilly Tim and Country Mac Brian - appear to be from Tombstone, Arizona and, even if they're not, enter right into the spirit of things with fine cowboy hats.

Only, this band doesn't do country or western. Instead this is balls to the wall rock American style halfway between ZZ Top and the Tubes. Now, there might well be only two of them in the band but they manage to make plenty of noise. The guitar riffs are harder than stone and songs like "My Broken Record" and "Desperate Spider Web" are propelled with all the certainty of a cruise missile. Oddly enough, there was also a kind of retro feel to this album making me suspect that this might be some long lost band from the eighties making a discreet reappearance on the scene.

It has to be said that the slower songs like "Touch and a Smile" don't come off as well as the faster numbers and the sound lacks dynamics but, all in all, this is a decent album that will go well with both beer and bourbon.

Available from CD Baby.

 


www.myspace.com/thebloodshotgamblers
Reviewer:
Review Date: May 4 2009