Triggerfinger-All This Dancin' Around
Antwerp's Triggerfinger are a good time bluesy rock n' roll band, channelling the likes of Deep Purple, ZZ Top and Led Zeppelin, who have acquired a strong cult following since their 1998 inception, albeit outside of the UK. 'All This Dancin' Around', their third album, is a good representation of their sound and could help break into territory such as these shores if promoted well, if not being an entirely convincing listen overall.
The title-track kicks the record off with a swaggering stomp, guitarist Ruben Block's echoing tones sitting somewhere between Robert Plant and Josh Homme while the spacious music not only tips its hat to these men's bands but also reminds one slightly of Motorpsycho's space-rock leaning recent output.
They're evidently a band who know their instruments well and as a result the eleven tracks comprised move around fluidly and explore different areas of the sound they possess, 'Love Lost In Love' has an intriguing western soundtrack feel in its twanging gallop while 'I'm Coming For You' has a building sleazy intensity and the epic 'My Baby's Got A Gun' takes the band into full-on prog-rock territory.
But while all this is well and good, the problem with the album is that once a listener gets past the first few songs it becomes a rather tedious affair with a fairly large dose of déjà vu being added to the mix. Block's vocals insist on using the same effects and as a result become grating while the album's lyrics of lust and love feel tired and uninspired, equally Monsieur Paul's swinging bull-dozer bass rarely changes throughout the album's entirety and by its mid-point begins to feel like you're being bashed over the head repeatedly, and not in a good way. With that said, Block's Matt Bellamy-esque vocal highs on 'All Night Long' are strange and endearing while the raw fret-mangling on 'Tuxedo' adds a new dimension to the music presented and encourages returning for multiple listens.
If you're a fan of bands with heavy grooves and riffs such as Black Label Society or ZZ Top then it's safe to say this will be right up your alley, if not though there's not anything interesting enough here to change your mind.