Album Review: The Ivory Elephant - Time Here is Up

The Ivory Elephant - Time Here Is Up

Well once again those doomsayers talking about rock music's demise will be eating their words after hearing this EP by Melbourne power trio The Ivory Elephant. Foot stomping, thigh slapping, head bobbing, beer swilling heavy riffage abounds on this corker of an EP. While this release has been out for a little while now I only recently found out about this band when they were playing on the same bill with another great local act Wichita (better late than never right?). The blistering guitar work from frontman Trent Sterling (who is also a member of the afrobeat band The Seven Ups) will have you dusting off your air guitar and jumping around the house imagining you are on the Woodstock stage playing in front of a half a million strong audience, while the rhythm section of Arthur Witherby & Donald Sargoog on Bass & Drums respectively provide a rock solid foundation which hits you right in the chest and leaves you gasping for breath like you have just been sucker punched. Further adding to the kaleidoscopic/tie-dyed feel is some tasty uncredited keys/organ playing which sits perfectly and unobtrusively in the background allowing the power trio sound to be the main focus.
While the sound on the 5 tracks of this EP unashamedly hearkens back to the classic rock era of the 60's & 70's and you could quite rightfully pin many "they kinda sound like..." tags to this band there is still something very much their own in the psych/rock/blues songs and sounds they are producing.
If you are a fan of rock music or just a fan of good songs grab yourself a copy of this latest EP and their previous self titled release and be sure to check them out when they are next playing live.

Album Review: Flame - Queen Of The Neighbourhood

Artist: Flame

Release: Queen Of The Neighbourhood

Style: Blues Rock

Well hot diggity damn! how did this one escape my notice until now? This is about as Rock n Roll as Rock n Roll music gets, it's 70's Rock n Roll the way it should be played. If you like your music loud and guitar driven with a definite blues flavour (which I most definitely do) then this release will be right up your alley.
Flame is a band that could've, would've, should've been the successors to the 70's Rock throne held by bands like Aerosmith, Alice Cooper and Kiss before them. Unfortunately it was not to be for whatever reason and the band broke up after only 2 albums (Singer Marge Raymond says "Flame would have been a huge band if not for all the BS behind the scenes that had nothing to do with the band"). Time seems to have forgotten all about these guys which is a downright shame because the 2 albums that they did release in the late 70's are nothing short of brilliant. Produced by Jack Douglas who worked extensively with Aerosmith in the 70's and featuring Jimmy Crespo on Guitar (who would later go on to join Aerosmith) their debut album is a statement that this band can stand toe to toe with any other headline act of their time and easily hold their own. In fact given the state of the
aforementioned bands in the late 70's I'm sure Flame would have blown them off the stage.
Jumping out of the starting gates with the galloping shuffle that is Beg Me this is an album that immediately grabs you by the scruff of the neck and demands you pay attention. Marge Raymond with her husky, gravelly, whisky soaked voice and an attitude reminiscent of Suzi Quatro and Janis Joplin delivers these songs in a manner that shows she knows what Rock n Roll is all about. She is certainly no amateur and in fact is quite possibly the quintessential female Rock n Roll vocalist. Never reissued in any form these albums are just screaming for the deluxe reissue treatment, preferably with an extra disc consisting of the recordings Marge did post the break up of Flame with Jimmy Crespo and Joey Kramer of Aerosmith, if someone knows how to make this happen then you
would have one very happy radio show host.