Inglorious
Inglorious II
Frontiers Music Srl
2017
Inglorious is a British quintet that did release a quite interesting album on Frontiers a while ago, one of those bands that Frontiers gave a chance to do what they were meant to do and rock is what they did.
I first encountered Nathan James singing for Uli Jon Roth and it was a bit underwhelming, since him trying to emulate Klaus Meine was a tall order and not something, he could totally pull off, convincingly. But given enough space to do his own thing, he’s a fairly competent vocalist who can stand out on his own. He sounds just as impressive on “II” as he did on the band’s debut and maybe even a bit more certain of himself. Think Cov meets Paul Rodgers with a few more Dickinson phrases, thrown in for good measure.
Musically the band has this early Purple meets Free, meets Whitesnake vibe; classic rock done with a renewed fervor and a great up to date sound. Fact of the matter, Kevin Shirley (producer of Aerosmith, Iron Maiden, Led Zeppelin fame) mixed their latest album, making it sound even better than the debut. Also back to the fold comes Inglorious original rhythm guitarist Drew Lowe replacing Will Taylor, while back for a second round are lead guitarist Andreas Eriksson, bassist Colin Parkinson, and drummer Phil Beaver.
There are lots of great numbers like the groovy opener “I Don’t Need Your Loving” that seems like the ideal mix between Led Zeppelin and Whitesnake, the rough and tumbling “Tell Me Why”, the dynamic “Read All About It” that’s a bit wilder than the rest, the far bluesier “Making Me Pay” or the more pulsating “Black Magic”. If I have to find a certain weakness, I’d say that there’s a bit of sameness, without a bonafide “hit” and for some reason, the hi-hat hits seem pretty identical in a lot of places with a certain ringing sound that at a certain level becomes somewhat annoying but not something that would really jump out on you. A favorable sophomore release that manages to cement the band’s reputation more than anything else.
I first encountered Nathan James singing for Uli Jon Roth and it was a bit underwhelming, since him trying to emulate Klaus Meine was a tall order and not something, he could totally pull off, convincingly. But given enough space to do his own thing, he’s a fairly competent vocalist who can stand out on his own. He sounds just as impressive on “II” as he did on the band’s debut and maybe even a bit more certain of himself. Think Cov meets Paul Rodgers with a few more Dickinson phrases, thrown in for good measure.
Musically the band has this early Purple meets Free, meets Whitesnake vibe; classic rock done with a renewed fervor and a great up to date sound. Fact of the matter, Kevin Shirley (producer of Aerosmith, Iron Maiden, Led Zeppelin fame) mixed their latest album, making it sound even better than the debut. Also back to the fold comes Inglorious original rhythm guitarist Drew Lowe replacing Will Taylor, while back for a second round are lead guitarist Andreas Eriksson, bassist Colin Parkinson, and drummer Phil Beaver.
There are lots of great numbers like the groovy opener “I Don’t Need Your Loving” that seems like the ideal mix between Led Zeppelin and Whitesnake, the rough and tumbling “Tell Me Why”, the dynamic “Read All About It” that’s a bit wilder than the rest, the far bluesier “Making Me Pay” or the more pulsating “Black Magic”. If I have to find a certain weakness, I’d say that there’s a bit of sameness, without a bonafide “hit” and for some reason, the hi-hat hits seem pretty identical in a lot of places with a certain ringing sound that at a certain level becomes somewhat annoying but not something that would really jump out on you. A favorable sophomore release that manages to cement the band’s reputation more than anything else.