Once again the musical hand of fate plays a blinder as Casey Maunder sent his debut album in for possible review and boy is it a good one! Casey plays all the guitars, vocals, bass, keys and wrote all the songs. The album’s producer is James Weaver and he also played bass, keys and programmed the drums.

Opening with a statement of intent with ‘Set Yourself On Fire’, a song with a instant chorus, riffs aplenty and a damn fine melodic hard rock tune. ‘Rolling The Rat House’ continues the good time rocking. Casey Maunder reminds me of Kelly Jones of the Stereophonics, that little bit of grit in a melodious vocal.

‘Thinking About The Moon’ is a slower tempo song, featuring another memorable chorus and nice little bit of keys. The ballad ‘City Rain’ sees an impassioned vocal on the chorus and again reminiscent of the Stereophonics.

‘Click Me, Swipe Me, Like Me’ is a belter and would be all over the radio in alternate world. Touch of Noddy Holder and the Slade sound on the social commentary on ‘If The World Was Torn In To’. Hard hitting lyric wrapped up in a delicious pop rock tune – bliss.

If you are after a melodic rock meets pop rock fix this album is for you. How he is not signed to a label is a mystery, as this album is more cohesive and full of melodies than can be found on many similar releases in this genre. Casey Maunder has set his own musical bar high with this top notch album. ****

Review by Jason Ritchie

We caught up with Casey who provided more background on the album and his fantasy band line-up…

How would you describe your music to a potential listener?

I think there are lots of different types of songs on the album but if I had to describe my music in a way that ties it all together, I’d say, high energy, guitar driven, melodic rock n roll.

What made you want to start singing and writing & recording your own music?

My father was always a gigging musician and so we had guitars, pianos and drum kits at home when I was growing up and so myself, my dad and my brother would be jamming and annoying the neighbours from an early age! At 12 I was going on gigs with my dad’s bands and getting up to do a few songs. I’d always written songs from when I first started playing but with this album I really wanted to go it alone and not have to compromise the material with other members of a band.

Who are your main musical influences and why?

The two bands that really blew me away when I was in my teens were Van Halen and Motley Crue. The music, the image and the attitude was so larger than life, I just couldn’t believe what I was seeing and hearing. Later on I discovered the Manic Street Preachers and although they were as high energy as the other bands I was listening to, lyrically they had a big influence on me as they were commenting on what they could see around them and being fellow Welsh men I could really relate to them.

Could you take us through the songs on your debut album e.g. recording process, stories behind the songs?

In terms of the process, myself and my producer James Weaver have a really good understanding and he’s always able to take what’s in my mind and make it a reality. Its always just the two of us in the studio and once I’ve laid the guitars down we can arrange the songs around that in terms of what needs to be layered on top.

In terms of the stories behind the songs they always tend to be about my outlook on the world and the things I see and experience. Rolling at The Rathouse for instance is about the nights I used to spend at infamous Swansea music venue The Coach House. You’d have metalheads, punks, goths and everything in between but everyone was bonded by our love of live music.

If the world was torn in two is about all the division I saw in the country after Brexit, Trump, Johnson etc. It seemed like everyone hated each other and wanted to kind of separate themselves from anyone that disagreed with them.

A lot of the other songs such as Set Yourself on fire and Slam dunk superstar are about self belief and saying I’m going to do what I do no matter who tries to put me down. Its also where the name of the album came from.

Any other bands & artists we should be listening to and checking out?

There’s so much amazing music being produced at the moment but certainly in the UK, the mainstream media seems to ignore it. Two that really stand out for me are Massive Wagons and The Struts. Both British bands that I’ve been fortunate enough to catch live. They both have so much energy and melody they always lift me when I listen to them

If you could create a fantasy band line up to join you on stage who would be in it and why?

Drums would be easy. Tommy Lee. An absolute hero of mine and a musician that doesn’t get the credit he deserves mainly because they were such an image driven band. On guitar it would be Nuno Bettencourt of Extreme because he’s simply the most gifted musician I’ve ever heard. Bass would be Nicky Wire of The Manics. Solid player, great lyricist and just really cool. If I couldn’t pick myself as singer and second guitar player then it would be Sammy Hagar. I absolutely love his voice and he’s still bringing it in his 70s!

What have you got planned gig wise for 2023?

There are a few live shows in the pipeline but they’re top secret at the moment! I promise I’ll let everyone know when I can! I can confirm that I’ll be opening up for Hell’s Addiction in April though and that a brand new single will be out before then!

My message to everyone that has downloaded, streamed or bought the album would be one of massive appreciation! You always think you’re writing good material but the real test is whether the guys listening to the music like it too and to see so many of you engage with the music is amazing.

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