From France comes The Socks, a 4-piece band who show their love for classic psychedelic hard rock on their full-length self titled debut for Small Stone Records. Remember the days when the organ/guitar freakouts of Deep Purple & Uriah Heep were all the rage, and bruising guitar heavy acts such as Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, and Blue Cheer were ripping up the charts? Well, the guys in The Socks might not have been old enough to experience those bands back in the day but they sure have studied their music well. This is blistering stuff, with tunes like the savage "Some Kind of Sorcery" filled with crushing proto-metal/blues riffs and screaming lead guitar solos, and the engaging, catchy "Lords of Illusion" chock full of hooks and tasty organ/guitar interplay. "Next to the Light" features some chilling Mellotron alongside heavy riffs and emotional vocals, while "New Kings" is steeped in massive grooves and scorching guitar licks. "Holy Sons" has an epic feel thanks to layers of vocals and some soaring fuzz soaked guitar riffs, and the frantic "Electric War" recalls In Rock era Deep Purple with its inventive riffs and mighty Hammond organ. Quite possibly the best song on the album. "Gypsy Lady" is slightly funky and dripping with lovely Hammond, "We Live" slows things down to an almost Black Sabbath inspired doom laden crawl, and closer "The Last Dragon" crushes with majestic proto-metal delight, as smoky organ and a never ending supply of creative guitar riffs support some powerful vocal melodies.
This is an excellent debut, and without a doubt a band we are going to be hearing quite a bit from in the future.
See more about this release on our recent YouTube show!
Track Listing
1. Lords Of Illusion
2. Some Kind Of Sorcery
3. Next To The Light
4. New Kings
5. Holy Sons
6. Electric War
7. Gypsy Lady
8. We Live
9. The Last Dragon
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