Quick plays: D’ERCOLE, THE ROCKET DOLLS, GREGORY ALAN ISAKOV

D’ERCOLE Made To Burn Rock Company [Release date 18.07.18]

Album number five from D’Ercole which consists of Phil Vincent – a man never shy of being in a recording studio! – guitarist Damian D’Ercole and drummer BF D’Ercole. Other guest guitarists include David Zychek (who has passed away since these recordings were made), Paul Sabu and Vince O’Regan (who Vincent worked with in the band Legion).

Overall not a bad album which tips a musical hat to 80′s hard rock from the likes of Dokken and Skid Row. The production is a bit thin at times especially on the drums, however the guitar riffs and solos are high in the mix. ‘Out Of Time’ and ‘Get Undone’ (with a Led Zep riff in the mix), are stand outs and deserve to be played out loud.

Not the best D’Ercole album, although there are plenty of riff-led hard rockers on here, it is just that they have done similar before and personally I prefer the solo Phil Vincent. ***

Review by Jason Ritchie

THE ROCKET DOLLS DeadHead

The Rocket Dolls hail from Brighton and the trio have just self-released new album “DeadHead”, and if you are a fan of Alice In Chains or Nickelback then this one is gonna be right up your street.

The album is a massive sounding polished affair from the off, with melodic opening track “None of This Is Right” setting the tone. Now, there are some good songs on “DeadHead”, the slower, made for radio “The Last Thing On My Mind”, the slow burning “Stop The Dead Men Crying”, “She Said” or “She Started Something”, however, as the album gets progressively heavier this where it becomes more interesting.

The final handful of tracks here include “Dreaming”, “The Desperate”, “Strain” and the bass led Metallica like feel of “Trigger” and this feels like the right direction for the album to be pulling you.

On the first couple of listens to “DeadHead”, whilst this is a good album, I get the feeling that everything is becoming a bit samey- not in the context of the collection of songs here but with this style of music in general. The Rocket Dolls are a good band, undoubtedly good live and with great songs, I would like to see them pull ahead of their competition. ***

Review by Nikk Gunns

GREGORY ALAN ISAKOV Evening Machines Dualtone Records [05.10.18]

Gregory Alan Isakov has previously self-released his previous albums and ‘Evening Machines’ is the first on a label. He is not only an accomplished musician, but also a full-time farmer who sells vegetable seeds and his own crops. Indeed he records his music in his barn, although the album is mastered in a standard recording studio.

Musically the album is led by Isakvov’s gentle singing which is backed by subtle, yet never overpowering arrangements. Mercury Rev came to mind when listening to this, none more so than on songs like ‘Too Far Away’ and ‘Caves’. Elsewhere, the listener is gently drawn along by ‘Where You Gonna Go’ – dreamy folk pop at its best.

He has made impressive sales via his own label and touring, and now is set to become known even more with the enjoyable ‘Evening Machines’. He has the songs and the voice to be heard in an ever increasingly crowded field of folk and Americana singer songwriters. ***1/2

Review by Jason Ritchie

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

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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.

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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)