Say I Won't

The further we get from the screaming tube-amp heyday of the 1970s, the more one wonders about the relevance of guitar-based rock & roll. That said, sometimes you just want a guitarist to hit you in the gut with a well-timed power chord and rip out a hot lick that crackles with the heat of a vinyl LP melting on the sidewalk of a hot summers day. Thats the vibe that veritably burns off Bass Drum of Deaths fifth album, Say I Wont. Produced by the Black Keys Patrick Carney, Say I Wont is the groups first full-length to feature the lineup of founding singer/guitarist John Barrett, his brother, guitarist Jim Barrett (who joined in 2020), and drummer Ian Kirkpatrick. Whether its the bluesy synergy between the two brothers, or the bands inspired knack for crafting anthems rife with a smoky pool-hall menace, Say I Wont has a buzzy, elevated energy that grabs you from the start. Carney largely steps out of the groups way, allowing them to dig into their stripped-down sound while adding just enough acid-soaked atmospherics onto John Barretts throaty sneer to lend a woozy, car stereo atmosphere to their straight-to-tape aesthetic. This is thudding, sinewy rock where you can feel the bands natural groove and sense their individual amps bleeding into each other. Hypnotic moments pop up all over, as on the serpentine death rocker "Head Change" with its hip-swaggering main riff and the chugga-chugga MC5-style hooks of "No Soul." With Say I Wont, Bass Drum of Death evoke the sweaty album rock of the 70s, infusing it with an undeniably raw and sultry immediacy all their own. ~ Matt Collar