By Contributing Writer: Octavio Ramos
 |
| Scars Blue’s “Devoured” |
Hailing
from the small town of Tijeras (Spanish for “Scissors) in the Land
of Enchantment, Scars Blue
unleash a powerhouse full-length studio CD, titled Devoured.
Taking a solid blues-driven foundation and twisting and turning it
with facets of hard rock, an underlying metal sensibility, and even
facets of progressive rock, Scars Blues creates an immediate,
distinct, and nostalgic sound all the same time. Listeners are likely
to recognize characteristics of their own rock idols, but Scars Blues
manages to take such influences to create a sound of their own.
Leading
the charge is guitarist Tim Griffiths Garcia, whose riffs take
southern rock sensibilities and whiskey-laden blues-driven rock.
Garcia’s riffs get the body moving, particularly when bassist Dan
Danikk Linich throws down his brand of thickened bass licks. One
listen to the tracks “Rise,” “Little Killers,” and the
thundering “Spoiled Brat” and you will catch the drift, as
without notice you start swaying to the auditory swagger. Garcia also
knows when to pull back, letting the rhythm section do its thing in
the six-string’s absence (listen to this about half-way into the
song “Rise”). Garcia also contributes background vocals, as does
Linich.
Out
front is Dion Tejada, whose liquor-saturated vocals bring out its own
sound. Tejada is not a crooner, preferring to belt out from back of
his lungs. Even on a track such as the southern-flavored “So Long,”
with some guitar melodies and a backdrop rhythm section, Tejada’s
mid-range vocals give the band’s its gravitas. It’s safe to say
that Tejada’s raging style is complemented by that of the guitar,
hearkening to the days of Deep Purple or Saxon.
Giving
the band its “balls,” much like Led Zeppelin’s legendary
percussionist, is Jeff Gerdts, whose powerhouse sticks know when to
let it rip and when to pull back. The rolls and fills complement the
music well, letting the guitar do its thing only to take it all back
and slam down so that listeners can catch the beat.
Fans
of progressive rock will catch facets of the genre on tracks such as
the opener “Wake the Dragon” (which opens with an air-raid siren)
and the aforementioned “So Long,” but the real stunner is the
title track, which ebbs and flows like a hurricane. Like the storm,
“Devour” strikes hard, only to pull back and let keyboardist and
piano aficionado Jane Manginii (Trans-Siberian Orchestra since 2001)
weave her spell of melody and progressive orchestration, and times
complemented by some accessible but intricate guitar work.
Hard
rock fans will relish all the tracks, but those who like some blues
in their aural soup will dig tracks such as “I Wont” (sic) and
the ragtag and aggressive “Wasted,” which bring out some solid
bass-driven heaviness (the bass licks on “I Wont” will thunder
your chest) with some crafty guitar riffs (check out the spinning
riff on “Wasted,” as well as the lovely acoustic guitar that fits
right in) and pissed off and at times downhearted vocals.
Devoured
will leave some scars, but they’ll all be as cool as blue. Those
who secure the CD will laugh out loud at the mystery track 10, which
brings with it a polka swagger (complete with some sweet bass) that
will get the blood pumping.