This Norwegian band originally
formed in the late 2002 was under my
radar until I review their latest album
'Youngblood' 2013. Since that day am I a
big fan of this interesting project.
Their driven classic hard rock with
similarities to bands like: UFO,
Molly Hatchet, Zeppelin, Black Sabbath
and Deep Purple is obvious, but I believe
Thin Lizzy is one of their biggest
paragons. 'Wolf in my Heart' kicks off
the album and it sounds like Led
Zeppelin and Ozzy made an album
together. Ultra strong guitars and
powerful vocals overwhelms me instantly
in the first spin of the album and 'Wolf
in my Heart' is one of the strongest
hard rock songs I've heard this year.
Because the vocalist Toschie
sings like the young Ozzy Osbourne did
in the golden 70's. This exciting side
project of Ice Dale (Enslaved) and
Thomas Tofthagen (Sahg) is both an
massive and classy rock n roll
bulldozer. Slick guitars and a steady rhythm section creates a solid foundation
through the album and top tracks like
'Holy Roller', 'Volcano Girl' and 'Tales
from the Crypt' are truly a stack of full
blooded hard rock tunes. One of the best
songs is 'Out of the City' with a big
bucket of old 'Thin Lizzy' swings and
very charming, catchy guitar riffs.
One of the shortest ballads I've heard
is their gentle song 'Diamond'. In the
beginning of 'Into the Wild' they just
explode with testosterone energy and
deliver some classic hard rocking
loops. Another shiny track is 'Gravity',
which is one of the slower songs and
it sounds like Ozzy is fronting Black Star
Riders with Tommy Iommi on guitar.
'High and Dry' isn't a cover of
Def Leppard's old hit song from the 80's.
No, this sounds more like an older
Iron Maiden song. Get the album
'Killers' in the head in an gentler
pace, but with same amazing guitars and
drumming. 'Waiting for the Night' is
also a fat groovy rock tune with
stunning guitar work and fantastic
vocals. The closing song 'Boy Wonder' is
one of the most elaborate and
well-written songs on the entire album.
One of my absolute favorite songs on
"Pure Heavy".
The title reflects what this
album contains. Pure and heavy rock n
roll, which is totally timeless and yet
modern at the same time. Norway is much
more than fjords and cod fishing! Sure,
they have Jorn Lande, Turbonegro, TNT
and a pile of black metal bands, but
Audrey Horne is my favorite band from
Norway. A very, very nice piece of art!
Line up:
Toschie - Vocal
Ice Dale - Guitar
Thomas Tofthagen - Guitar
Kjetil Greve - Drums
Espen Lien - Bass
