Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons – Kings of the Asylum
Release Date: 1st September 2023
Label: Nuclear Blast
Order/Stream
Genre: Rock, Hard Rock, Rock n Roll, Heavy Metal.
FFO: Motorhead, The Almighty.
Review By: Paul Franklin
Maybe it’s an age thing, but are we finding more and more ways to define things into increasingly niche categories? Take cars, can you really explain the difference between a compact crossover and a small SUV? Same goes for music, just look at the reviews on this site and the vast number of different genres that now fall under the Rock/Metal umbrella.
Now, choice is good, but too much choice can be overwhelming. Sometimes you just want a straightforward option, sometimes you want that tin of Ronseal.
Step forward Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons (PCATBS), they play Rock n Roll, plain and simple. Actually, to be more accurate, they play LOUD Rock n Roll, and they play it extremely well.
Opener Walking in Circles is the first opportunity to hear what new singer Joel Peters can bring to the family gathering. The answer is an impressively growly set of pipes and a ‘tattoo and leather’ vocal tone, very reminiscent of Ricky Warwick in the early days of The Almighty. The result being the band end up adding a few extra attitude points to the eleven songs on the album. As Joel himself says, “We’ve got some definite bangers here!”
Bangers indeed. Hammer and Dance thumps you in the solar plexus with some monstrous drums and bass, whilst still possessing a chorus catchier than man flu during a World Cup. Schizophrenia significantly ups the heavy riff count, and the title track has a little bit of a blues vibe swirling around the padded cells.
Strike a Match takes us back to the glowing nostalgia of the 80s, whilst the double bass riff that rolls in like an Indiana Jones crushing boulder at the start of The Hunt will have all Motorhead fans in convulsions of joy.
Kings of the Asylum ends with Maniac, a gleefully adolescent middle finger salute that reminds us that after all it’s only Rock n Roll…but, we fucking love it!
(4.5 / 5)
