Alabama Black Snakes

Shake It Like The Lord Ain't Watching

Written by: BV on 20/04/2013 17:47:58

The Danish country-rocking dudes in Alabama Black Snakes write songs about all the things rock n’ roll is really all about; booze, women and somewhat mischievous conduct. In many ways the sound reminds me of a slightly heavier version of Lynyrd Skynyrd molded into a somewhat more melodic version of Bourbon Boys. Despite the ‘lack’ of originality, courtesy of Alabama Black Snakes, I immediately got drawn to their sound and the whole universe they mold their sound on their second album “Shake It Like The Lord Ain’t Watching” around.

The opening track of the album “Drinking With Myself” is a no-bullshit straight-up rocker with a somewhat fast tempo to it. On this song, as well as on much of the album in general, Alabama Black Snakes prove that all you really need is a distorted guitar sound, a tight rhythm section and two dudes that sing kind of cool to write songs, so if you came here looking for a deep, ambient and chiming soundscape, you clearly took a wrong turn somewhere.

The ‘simple’ soundscape will always be a matter of debate, as these tend to sound ridiculously dated before you even realize what went wrong. Fortunately this isn’t the case with Alabama Black Snakes, as they aren’t trying too hard to really be ‘authentic’ within this genre rather than just write songs about all the stuff they genuinely think is cool. More so, it is particularly important to stress that, even though the sound of the album may eventually be dated, the musicianship here is of a quality that cannot be dismissed as easily. For example on the boogie-rocking track “Save the Boogie” – it can easily be dismissed as yet another country-rock song about booze, partying and women, but the music is performed with such an authority and an air of catchiness to it that basically demands that this song, along with a lot of other tracks from the album, should be played at parties if you want to get people in festive mood.

In essence, there is nothing new about Alabama Black Snakes but they are skilled musicians that have made a ridiculously catchy country-rock album that I am starting to think is a good acquisition for any casual fan of the genre. It’s nothing new, but who cares about that, because it’s actually pretty good and still quite authentic without ever really becoming too dated. In any case, I’m digging it, and I hope these guys will keep the good times flowing at their gigs as I could imagine these to be quite the party.

Download: Save The Boogie, Dunnobody Know, Drinking With Myself
For The Fans Of: Bourbon Boys, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Toby Keith
Listen: facebook.com

Release Date 13.04.2013
Self-released


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