Album review: ALBANY DOWN – Born In The Ashes

September 8th, 2023 by Davoski

AD Recordings [Release date: 01.09.23]

Back after too long away and with a changed band membership, Paul Turley’s Albany Down hit the racks with a fourth album, ‘Born In The Ashes’. And very fine it is too. Seven eventful years have passed since ‘The Outer Reach’ saw the light of day and I had assumed that, like many bands in these tumultuous times, they had simply bitten the dust.

Well not so. Though only founder member Turley survives, and maybe the album title is very literal. He has now added lead vocal duties to his exemplary guitar work, and the band is completed by drummer, Pete Hancock, and bassist Ben Atkins. Nick Nasmyth adds some deft keybaord parts throughout.

‘Born in the Ashes’ is more diverse than earlier albums. It is packed full of electric blues and hard rock nods from Zep to Cream, but also laced with funky, soulful, melodic and commercial passages that Black Stone Cherry or Thunder might plunder.

Early tracks on the album emphasise that point. Opener, ‘Always Want What You Can’t Have’ immediately plays the band’s hard-rocking cards – driving riff, huge drums, pumping bass and searing solos. Love it.

But surprises are in store. Next up, ‘Good News’ hits fast with a catchy, pop-influenced vocal hook, a swinging riff and bar room piano.

The mood switches again with a mid-paced bluesy outing on ‘Same Damn Thing’ with stacked brass and backing vocals in a sound reminiscent of Kenny Wayne Shepherd or Tommy Castro.

All previous AD outings have been produced by Greg Haver (Manic Street Preachers, Super Furry Animals) and he’s back on the flight deck for this release. The touch is assured. Never more so than on the first ballad to sneak out of the speakers, ‘The Memory of What Used to Be.

Turley’s ever-so-slight nasal twang is lifted and sweetened on this track by the delicious backing vocals of Cat Wyn Southall. It’s almost a duet in truth. Lush keyboards fill out the wistful narrative and there’s a couple of solos – one beautifully understated and the other ripped from the ‘emotional jugular’ drawer – to complete a top quality song.

‘Reflections’ shows off Turley’s exquisite playing with obvious Hendrix-infused vibes and another catchy vocal hook. The mid-track solo is an absolute killer.

The title track is a twisty-turny thing of hard-driving guitar/keyboard riffs, a defiant narrative, quiet passages and rhythm changes. Turley’s vocal performance here is maybe the best on the album, stretching for and nailing some soaring notes.

‘Darkest Day’s doom-laden tones pick up a mix of riff-heavy energy interspersed with a mighty chorus, pauses, breakdowns, a wisp of slide guitar and a hint of keyboard prog. This is the band flexing all their muscles.

There is a lot of consistent bang-top quality across the 13 track, near-hour long album, and the highlights keep coming.

‘Your Days Are Numbered’ kicks out a splintering hard edged guitar riff undercut with grinding organ tones and provides a dark counterpoint to other material, with a vaguely threatening lyrical theme of retribution and revenge.

A second ballad is ‘Heavy Soul’, with a stripped down structure and plaintive lyrics, breaking into rich synth strings and piano tinkles before an extended guitar solo ushers in layered waves of sweet vocals and emotional guitar.

The final track ‘Let Your Love Shine’ opens with thunderous drums and a lowdown, rough riff to ensure the album rocks hard right through to the final knockings.

Seven years is surely too long between releases, but whatever the reasons, this excellent album deserves to build some momentum and push Albany Down towards enduring and wide-spread success. ****

Review by Dave Atkinson

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