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Datura 4 — West Coast Highway Cosmic
(Alive Natural Sound 0208, 2020, CD / LP)

by Henry Schneider, Published 2020-08-14

West Coast Highway Cosmic Cover art

Australian rockers Datura4 are back with their fourth album and they continue to hone and improve their sound. On West Coast Highway Cosmic they have added the hard rocking sounds of a Hammond organ to their musical arsenal and they are stretching their musical muscles. The title track opens the album with a Vanilla Fudge flair and then they launch into their own world, taking the wimpy chorus from Steam’s “Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye,” pumping it full of testosterone, and transforming it into a gut-wrenching organ riff. “Wolfman Woogie” launches into Canned Heat territory with tremolo guitar and harmonica that simmers for five minutes, finally reaching a boil for the climax. “Mother Medusa” is a gutsy Texas blues ZZ Top rocker. Then we travel back to the West Coast for desert rocker “A Darker Shade of Brown,” followed by the gothic western “You’re the Only One,” with its ghostly soft vocals and slide guitar. “Rule My World” takes us back to Texas blues rock, combining influences from Stevie Ray Vaughn, Johnny Winter, and ZZ Top. “Give” follows showcasing Mariani’s guitar chops in an all-out psych rock and Hammond organ jam. “You Be the Fool” is hard Southern Delta Blues rock and roll. “Get Out” shifts gears a bit to a psych boogie. And the album closes with slowly paced “Evil People Pt. 1” with tons of organ and dark reverbed guitar. Quite an impressive album that is sure to please.

Filed under: New releases, 2020 releases

Related artist(s): Datura 4

More info
http://www.alive-records.com/artist/datura4/

 

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