Play 90 second soundbite of 'Devil My Deceiver' @ 'CD quality'
'Contradictions' grooves along beautifully with blue/jazzy vibes and slick keyboard work that reminds me of the great Al Kooper. The album has been recorded true to the era; quite minimalistic and with that great 'live' feel. The tracks are long enough to allow the listener to get into them but are never over-long, never self-indulgent and they never lose the theme. 'Contradictions' is cleverly constructed and true to type. Maybe less pure than 'Super Session' by Mike Bloomfield, Al Kooper & Steve Stills, definitely more British, but along the same lines and equally as addictive.
As I listen I am indeed transported back in time - hey that's good not bad! Let's face it, the whole earthy blues/rock thing not only flourished but brought about some fantastic new bands and a whole different take on how we thought about good music; the Western World woke up to new musical possibilities, big time! Underground Ballroom are helping to re-discover that freedom of musical interpretation and experimentation - raw and honest and thankfully, utilising basic instrumentation without the aid of multitudinal electronic assists! And, there's many around who feel that the re-incarnation of blues based 'popular' music is long over-due and that, one day, it'll be back in our homes as the recurring cycle of musical identities once more turns full-circle.
'Contradictions' is a nicely chilled affair; Underground Ballroom don't seem to get themselves bogged down in repetitive, drawn out solos - they keep it real but maintain a high degree of individual expression without becoming trite. I like what I hear. I like where it's going. I cherish the idea that bands such as Underground Ballroom might just bring back some reality to modern 'grown-up' blues/rock. The live music scene has been devoid of bands such as Underground Ballroom for far too long; these babes could just be on to something very hot! Nice stuff - more please!
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