*. Gin Lady .*

Album: Gin Lady (2012)
Genre: Hard Rock (Prog Rock)  /  Sweden

Many a prog fan were bummed when in late 2010 popular Swedish prog act Black Bonzo announced that they were calling it quits after 3 albums. That sad news was quickly brightened however when a few months later a new band was revealed featuring former members of Black Bonzo & The All Janet, who where now calling themselves Gin Lady. Fast forward to 2012 and the bands self-titled debut is ready to be released, which shows a move to more classic & heavy rock styles. Gin Lady is comprised of Joakim Karlsson, Magnus Kärnebro, Anthon Johansson, Fredrik Normark and Klas Holmgren, and it's no surprise that they find themselves on Transubstans Records, which has shown to be a great home for Scandinavian bands who love that retro vibe. You can hear a definite Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, Captain Beyond, Warhorse, Alice Cooper, Iron Butterfly, and Blue Oyster Cult influence going on here, with tasty guitar licks, loads of Hammond organ, and powerful vocals. Tunes such as "Rebirth" and "Get It On" rock hard with swirling Hammond and heavy blues rock guitar riffs, while the catchy "Lend Me a Hand" has a rootsier feel, coming close to the sounds of the Rolling Stones or The Faces. "Deja Vu" is a great heavy rocker with deep grooves, sort of like a strange marriage of Wolfmother and The Black Crowes, and "The Rest" is haunting, moody prog rock, with ominous Hammond and dreamy vocals, a track that sounds like it could have been recorded in 1971 and come off a vintage Uriah Heep or Atomic Rooster album. Next up is a blistering hard rocker called "Bloodsuckin' Babies" featuring stomping Hammond, piano, and guitar riffs plus vocals with plenty of swagger, and this is followed by the equally heavy "Bottom of the Sea", another grinding rocker that has early '70s written all over it. Gin Lady doesn't bother to hide their love for classic Deep Purple on the raging "Confrontation Shakedown", and proggy closer "Hold On" sees some Yes influence creep in on the vocal front to invade the moody arrangements. As much as Black Bonzo will be missed, this debut from Gin Lady is very impressive and signals the arrival of a band who really can put together some splendid '70s inspired hard rock. More of this please!!! 
Review by "Pete Pardo" (www.seaoftranquility.org).

RATING:  8.25 / 10

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