Coming from a city that has created almost no good rock bands 5 Grams rises out of the dirt and the mud of a city obsessed with American pop music with one of the most pure rock and roll sounds you will ever hear. With aggressive guitars that don't fail to show a blues influence the riffage on this record is great. The bass is solid and nicely compliments powerful the powerful drumming. Finally the vocals are dirty, raw and untreated and rise above all the other hipsterish filth that has come out of this city. 5 Gram is one of the most rock n roll bands left on the European continent from their filthy guitars to their half growled vocals this band rocks and will blow your head off.
The guitars have lots of huge riffs on every song and not a single one denies a heavy blues influence. What the guitarists here are doing is taking the classic sound of bands like Sabbath and Led Zep and Budgie and making them heavier preparing them for a new age. One of my favorite riffs is on the track Black Cadillac where a high powered lick allows for a fun chorus. On all songs the fills are very well written and never too technical allowing for a good rock and roll feel to the album. As for the solos, suffice to say they are great. I suspect that the majority of them are improvised and that just makes them that much better. I do wish there was a bit more hardcore shredding though like in a bit of the solo of Falling Down. But already there is a certain raw joy in the solos on this album that makes me just want to dance.
The bass is loud and powerful and gets a lot of fills in every song. A notable bass track is Still Burn where a solid bass introduces the chorus and helps turn the song up to 11. 5 Grams is great because it really gives their bass guitarist a chance to shine and show off his technical skill (of which he has a lot). On future releases I would like to have even more bass on the songs. The drums are also very well done. They never become to crazy and overpowered and have a sort of swampy blues feel to them keeping the music stuck in its roots. A notable drum fill is heard in the albums 5th song Your Girl Is Mine where the drums build up to the huge chorus and make the band hard rocking and powerful. All in all this band's rhythm section is powerful and keeps the band moving forward.
Finally we have the vocals, belted out by a guy who has some of the most dirty and screwed up lungs I have ever heard. AND HE ROCKS! 5 Grams singer's dirty half growl/smokers voice style of singing makes the band awesome. This is their way of saying no to convention by having dirty vocals that aren't full out death growls. In a way they are reminiscent of Lemmy's vocals with Motorhead and considering the scene in Paris they have the exact same affect to the music. The lyrics themselves are also pretty good typically dealing with very rock and roll subjects. Some key subjects on this record involve love, rock and roll and partying. The instruments are sick dirty and ripe with that good old garage tone and the vocals make it that much better.
To finish 5 Grams is essentially super heavy garage rock and they come across with one of the greatest most rock and roll sounds of the year. With powerful guitars that always acknowledge their blues roots, a solid rhythm section and excellent vocals 5 Grams is more than ready to rock their way to fame. Go listen to them now people, there record must be heard, it is one of the few good records to come out of Paris this year. These guys can do it they can take the world by storm, but only if you like their page.
OVERALL 9/10
http://www.facebook.com/5grams
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