Album review: BLACKLIST UNION – Letters From The Psych Ward

October 6th, 2023 by jason

Cargo Records [Release date 15.09.23]

Big, slick, dark and dirty, “Letters From The Psych Ward” is the latest album from Blacklist Union, the band’s sixth, and first for eight years. The album embraces decades of musical influences and therefore sounds modern yet classic, it also could be a contender for my favourite album of 2023 at this point.

There is not a weak track amongst the thirteen on offer here, but there are a handful of standout songs in “Out On A Jones”, “Whore of Babylon”, “Devil With The Angel Face”, “Gates of Steel” (complete with a slightly familiar sounding riff that is reminiscent of the Sex Pistols – have a listen, you’ll see what I mean), for me though, the album’s lead single “Dirty Halo” is the hands down winner here.

The darker “The Queen of Everything”, “Dancing With The Angels” and massive sounding “Mia” are also essential listening, and the album closes with a cover of Bowie’s “Golden Years”.

Blacklist Union is led by frontman Tony West, the band’s only permanent member, who has created an absolute blinder of an album with “Letters From The Psych Ward”. If you are a fan of the likes of Guns n Roses, Velvet Revolver and Stone Temple Pilots but want a fresh and modern slant on this then you will love this album. *****

Review by Nikk Gunns

Get Ready to ROCK! - The Best of 2023

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

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Power Plays w/c 11 November 2024

ARCANE MOON Hello Sun (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC XTC (Long Branch Records)
ARCANA KINGS Here We Go (Curtain Call Records)
KLOGR face The Unknown (Zeta Factory)
BEYOND UNBROKEN Dance With The Dead (FiXT)
REVENGIN Decadent Feeling (Wormholedeath)

Featured Albums w/c 11 November 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Singer Songwriter)