The British rockers that call themselves Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell (taken after an English naval officer) have delivered one hell of a late '60's/early '70s psychedelic/hard rock/proto-metal mindfuck here with their debut release Don't Hear It...Fear It! for Rise Above/Metal Blade Records. I mean, this slab of heaviness just oozes a certain vibe that was so prevalent in like 1969 or 1970, when bands like Sir Lord Baltimore, Black Sabbath, Blue Cheer, Dust, Budgie, Deep Purple, and Captain Beyond were blowing everyone's minds with blasts of blues driven power chord hell. In fact, this CD sounds so close to what was being released during that period that you'll have a hard time convincing yourself that this is the bands debut and recorded in 2012 and not 40 years ago. Retro? Yes! Heavy? Yes!
Just listen to the slabs of molten guitar thunder on killer tracks like "Devil's Island" and "iDeath", or the psychedelic passages of the bizarre opener "Mark of the Beast", all examples of how well these guys have channeled those classic sounds perfectly. The blistering lead guitar and beefy riffs of "Red Admiral Black Sunrise" recalls early Budgie, and the whiskey soaked gruff vocals perfectly complement the down & dirty menace of this and every song here. The crushing riffs of "Scratchin' and Sniffin' " instantly bring to mind classic Black Sabbath or Mountain (yes, these are HUGE riffs!), and the super charged stomp of "The Last Run" has vintage BTO all over it. And for all Blue Oyster Cult fans out there, check out the hard rock & psych of "Bean Stew", which features some ripping lead guitar and hard driving rhythms.
Don't Hear It...Fear It is retro heavy rock at its best. There's not much more I can say here-if you love all those classic bands that I've mentioned above, you need this CD. Yes, the band has one of the longest and strangest names in rock, but their music stands on its own. Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell has delivered a crushing homage to classic hard rock here, and one of 2012 biggest surprises.
Track Listing
1. Mark of the Beast
2. Devil's Island
3. iDeath
4.Killer Kane (Reprise)
5. Red Admiral Black Sunrise
6. Scratchin' and Sniffin'
7. The Last Run
8. Bean Stew
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