Burning Condors - Round Our Way

  by Malcolm Carter

published: 31 / 10 / 2013

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British band Burning Condors have already gained quite a following after releasing four well-received singles. They’ve drawn comparisons from the Sex Pistols to the Arctic Monkeys mainly due to the raw uninhibited sound these four guys make but make no mistake; for all the influences that creep into their music this band definitely create a sound that is all their own. The eleven songs on their debut were recorded in Nashville, which has added an extra dimension to the maelstrom of sound that Burning Condors produce. More blues than punk the band rip through these songs like it’s the last time they are ever going to play. Sunday morning listening, it definitely isn’t. While the best of this album has already seen the light of day over the singles released so far ‘(Love on the Rocks’ which was issued as a 7” vinyl single in August and ‘Honey Trap’ the blues-wailing first single which saw the light of day back in September 2012, are all you need to hear to know where this band and this album are coming from), there are still half a dozen tracks that many are hearing for the first time and which are so much more than mere filler on the album. It was an inspired move to make ‘Honey Trap’ the first single. There was no way it could fail to grab your attention. The sleazy swagger of frontman Marcus ‘Tommy’ Thompson’s bluesy vocals didn’t just squeeze every last ounce of seediness from every line of the song. He strangled every word into submission. With sterling back-up from Matthew Edun on guitar, Chris Church on bass and with James Bourne turning in exceptional performances on drums, this is a band that were born to make this music together. The tracks merge into each other almost without a break and, while the band never really stray from the formula of those singles, you never get the feeling that you are hearing the same song twice. What makes ‘Round Our Way’ so appealing though is the obvious talent each member has with his chosen instrument and when the band is given the space to expand on their basic punk/blues template as on songs such as ‘Knockout’ (which was issued as the second single earlier this year) the results are even more impressive. Thompson shows here that he’s a match for the excellent breed of blues-wailers that the UK seemed to produce regularly five decades ago but who have been absent from the scene here since. The proof is right here on this song that the UK has once again found someone who not only has a brilliant blues voice but feels every word he sings. But Thompson’s vocals are only half the story. When you really listen to this band, it’s evident that every member is pouring their heart and soul into each song and that they have the talent to make these songs reach out and grab you. Just listen to the blistering lead guitar work in ‘Killing Time’ for evidence that this band know exactly what they are doing. Listening to ‘Round Our Way’ you get the feeling that Burning Condors would be worth catching live, that a hot sweaty club is the best place to hear this kind of music. It’s hard not to be drawn into the dirty, dark side of life their music evokes for the duration and remarkably the band have captured the excitement their live shows must generate perfectly on this album; listening to it is like being in the centre of that club. A blast in more ways than one, if the band can keep up the quality of the songs and the energy displayed here, they are going to be huge in a very short space of time.

Track Listing:-

1 Dirty Girl Blues
2 Killing Time
3 Round Our Way
4 Polka Dot Girl
5 Love On the Rocks
6 Honey Trap
7 Love Is Dead
8 Twisted Kind of Bliss
9 Knockout
10 Last Train Home
11 Bringing Back the Blues

Band Links:-

http://burningcondors.tumblr.com/
https://www.facebook.com/burningcondors
https://twitter.com/burningcondors
https://www.youtube.com/user/burningcondors

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