Celler
Greece of all places houses a band that cites influences such as The Atomic Bitchwax, Fu Manchu, Dozer, so that immediately got my attention when this came up to review. After listening to the release for a fair few times, I can hear what they are about, although there isn’t much (if any) fuzz in the sound if I am totally nit-picky.

As with the album cover (by drummer Evan), the music is simple and to the point. The vocals are raw and with a sound each to their own, there are marginal similarities to Clutch’s Neil Fallon, as with some of the music, but it is far from a copy of that band. The Cellar Dogs merge all of these stimuli but come at you with a more garage band approach when the pace is increased. The tripped out moments are few and far between, (not helped by the raw sound of the guitars and quiet stance of the bass) but if you’re looking for this, then check within ‘Kalmotxo’ and to a certain extent within ‘Confidential Game’, these would probably tickle your fancy more and they certainly stand out more for me on the album.

Other notable tracks include ‘Knuckles’ and ‘Hitch ‘n’ Hike’ that all move a step in the right direction, but it doesn’t go far enough for me to claim the influences that were highlighted in the PR material. That said, it’s an enjoyable album, a steady starting point, but I am convinced there’s more in the tank for the next release.

(6/10 Paul Maddison)

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