Ghalia Volt – Burn The House Down
This showcase displays the aggressive vocals of Ghalia Volt & the bulldozer instrumentation layered throughout “No Ice Please” with Brian Allen’s well-fried bass, the rough-hewed guitars (Ghalia & JD) & absorbing drums of Chris Powell. It adds up to a tasty formula akin to something Amy Winehouse cultivated after getting pricked by ‘60s girl group spikes.
What Ghalia (vocals/guitars/slide guitar) offers in abundance is atmosphere & gutsiness, as tacked to the interplay of guitars. “Mine” alone is seductive, sensual, & sweaty too. 11 red-tipped matches strike the box to Burn The House Down (Drops May 15/Ruf Records/37:432) produced by JD Simo (guitars/slide guitar) at The House of Grease, Nashville, TN.
Basically, the songs are catchy, good rock ‘n’ roll with a spattering of retro-ness, to Ghalia’s vocal intonation, phrasing & articulation. It becomes a showpiece. “Ride” has muscle, and the slow blues sizzle of “Where Do We Go” has smoke. The guitar’s heavy & provocative with a tinge of the late John Campbell. Impressive throughout.
Not all tunes will light the bulb to bursting atop your head, but even the playful tunes have enough fuel to keep the album momentum moving. “Wrong Horse” is almost a novelty tune. The retro-early ‘50s Scotty Moore-type lead guitar skids across the melody & it’s nicely done. Some of Ghalia’s best vocals don’t even appear on the best songs. Go figure. “Lucifer’s Grip” is a bit wide ranging, but the vocal is penetrating. Sometimes, guitars should be just chicken noodle soup with croutons & not a minestrone with so many flavors.
The group never loses sight of its aim. Good upbeat rock ‘n’ roll, some buttered-up blues, a slather of country & lots of groove-provocation. The title track is saturated with ambitious vocal weaving with predatory guitars & musicians who fuel the fire. It’s a cool showpiece just short of being a show tune. The band is effective as a 4-piece unit.
With “River Song,” the band goes incendiary as the old heavy rock bands & equally creative musically. Think of Iron Butterfly, Gun with the Gurvitz brothers & Status Quo. The band has a wonderful approach to its exploration & I say it again – beyond the powerful vocals & the high-octane guitars, the band operates from a tight groove position & it’s felt. “Let Yo’ Hair Down,” – imagine The Grateful Dead with guest vocalist Janis Joplin, with the musical jam as stimulating as a shot of Jack Daniels.
CD is a laminated 6-panel fold-out with good pictures.
Highlights – “No Ice Please,” “Mine,” “Where Do We Go,” “Wrong Horse,” “Burn The House Down,” “River Song” & “Let Yo’ Hair Down.”
Cover image courtesy of Jeremy Joyce. CD @ Amazon + https://ghaliavoltshop.com/collections/burn-house-down & https://wordpress.rufrecords.de/en/new-single-ghalia-volt-burn-the-house-down-2/
Enjoy some of our previous coverage here: REVIEW: Ghalia Volt’s “One Woman Band” is Dirt Road Blues