Awesome Color - Awesome Color - 2006

Awesome Color is a power trio from Brooklyn but their original and spiritual home is in the Midwest; the Midwest where drums sound like they're pounded with tree limbs, where angry, ugly guitars and snarled, over-amped vocals rule the day, and the Stooges rule with a leather whip and a TV eye. The band's self-titled debut is a rocket-fueled blast of energy and brains, packed with songs and sounds that will blow you away. They are equally adept at bashing out short and devilish rockers, and at weaving through longer and slower trippy tunes like the album's last track, "Animal." Guitarist/vocalist Derek Stanton is both an amazing singer from the howl-till-the-mic-feedbacks school, and a fiery guitarist with a knack for bludgeoning riffs and raw, exciting solos, too. He's backed with precision by drummer Allison Busch and bassist Michael Troutman; they give Stanton room to run wild and are always there when he lands. A near perfect rhythm section, in other words. The trio put their skills to use on hook-filled, roof-raising tracks like "Ridin'," "Free Man," the rampaging "Hat Energy" (which features some fine free-form sax work from Wade Kergan) and the near Sabbath grind of "See You Hear You." You wouldn't think from looking at the booklet photo of the group that such an innocent looking bunch (dressed in such loud colors!) could create a sound so hairy, tough and thudding. They can, though, and while they are nothing if not derivative, they play with so much energy and fire that they sound like contemporaries, even peers, of the Stooges, not like kids kicking out the jams almost 30 years later. Awesome Color lives up to their name. -AMG



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