Album link [Release date 15.09.23]

With their Steampunk ethos adding a nice twist to their individual take on rocking prog, Doris Brendel and Lee Durham have created and fruitfully harvested their own niche.

Seen most recently both opening for Fish and with Brendel as his backing singer, the core duo has certainly been mixing in the right circles and with shows with Wishbone Ash, their touring cavalcade the length and breadth of the country has put them in front of the right audiences.

Whilst their shows are always visually arresting, it’s always been the music that matters most and this, fifth, release is their strongest yet.

With the suitably soaring title track kicking things off, the sweeping prog a perfect vehicle for the singer’s wonderfully husky vocals and Durham’s glorious fretwork, the following ‘Better the Devil You Know’ bringing a heavy slab of AOR feel to proceedings that mixes 70’s hard rock with the sweep of the keys.

Given that Brendel and Durham have created their own sub-genre, they have the skills and palette of sounds to create whatever they want and the album is an ever-changing kaleidoscope that draws on a whole world of influences. Here, the dirty rocker with melodic and lilting chorus in ‘Fighting Fire With Fire’ sits nicely next to the smoky late-night blues of ‘Good Deed Of The Day’ that could have been born in New Orleans French Quarter.

Things get even stranger as you head down the rabbit hole to the world-warping storytelling of ‘Ghost’, the Led Zep meets Radiohead twisted thunder of ‘I Saw You’ and the strutting funky soul they bring with ‘Rock And A Hard Place’. Whilst they certainly know how to put the hammer down, it’s when the pair ease back that they’re at their most potent, the soul in Brendel’s voice and finesse in Durham’s playing coming to the fore.

Most strikingly on this release, the swaying folk meets pastoral Pink Floyd of ‘Rorschach’ and breath taking closer ‘White Rose’ are heights in just how to put together something that touches the soul gently but with a steady hand. Along with the stunning ‘Still Waters’ and the furious maelstrom of ‘Truth Needs No Colours’, the whole of ‘Pigs Might Fly’ is a sublime exercise in invention.

A wholly fascinating dimension to find yourself in, ‘Pigs Might Fly’ is a sound retort to anyone saying there’s nothing new in the world these days and shows just how powerful imagination and the talent to pull it off can be. Sublime. ****1/2

Review by Paul Monkhouse

---

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.

Next session: Sunday 19 January

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

---

David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 1 December 2024.

UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 3 December 2024.

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Listen via Windows Media Player. Click or tap here and “open file”
Listen via other media player (eg. VLC) Click or tap here and “open file”

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com

---

Power Plays w/c 9 December 2024

In this sequence we play ‘The Best of 2024′ GRTR! reviewer selections

Featured Albums w/c 9 December 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2024 (Singer Songwriter)

---

---

Popular (last 10 days)

---