The instrumental stoner trio that goes by the name of Admiral Browning are unleashing their fifth album Give No Quarter, another in a line of fine, groove laden, riffy, prog-tastic platters that show that hard work does pay off for this busy band. The lads from the capitol region of the US, Matt Legrow (guitar), Tim Otis (drums), and Ron McGinnis (bass), have put together seven tracks of heavy hitting, at times intricate arrangements that often remind of the fury of Mastodon or the daring musical explorations of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, but done up stoner style of course.
Songs like the furious metallic fusion of "Leeroy Jenkins" or the swampy, sludge laden riffery of "Zee Birds", never fail to impress, while the dark & ominous "Malachai's Lament" lets loose the prog & stoner all at once for a tumultuous ride. The real surprise here are the upbeat flamenco flavors on the lovely "Las Aranas Lobo", with Legrow really showing his acoustic guitar chops during the intro before the whole band converge into some frightening yet groovy hard rock/jazz fusion passages. At about 41-minutes in total, Give No Quarter doesn't overstay its welcome, but does a great job getting its point across. At times I was almost wanting vocals in spots, or possibly a Hammond organ here or there, but for the most part Admiral Browning do a solid job of making these instrumental songs memorable and enjoyable. In a day where there are way too many instrumental albums that fail to live up to expectations, kudos to these guys for hitting the mark yet again.
Track Listing
1) Theme For Evil
2) Leeroy Jenkins
3) Zee Birds
4) Malachai's Lament
5) Traps
6) Las Aranas Lobo
7) Rogue Planet
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