Portugals The Fuzz Drivers prove that the classic rock formula is alive and well.
There’s such a great vibe to this album as soon as you put it on. Hailing from Portugal, The Fuzz Drivers know how to put a song together on their self titled debut album; it’s well written, has great build up’s into the chorus and solo’s and such a smooth cool sound. The opening track Discordia Song is instantly catchy and sounds like something you’d hear being played on high rotation on the radio. Don’t let that put you off though as these guys aren’t the typical hard rock band, they’ve got some massive swagger and grooves going on. It’s a classic sound for sure but blended well with newer twists and great riffage with some powerful vocals. Track three takes me back to the ‘90s with bands like The Black Crowes who were so heavily influenced by classic rock yet added their own style with the vibe of the era and some southern fried groove. It’s a driving “runaway train” with a massive solo that keeps building.
My favourite track if I had to choose would be the smooth and chilled 5 minute 30 Into The Sun. Swirling sounds and such a steady head swaying vibe. It has some very cool Doors like keys on it by drummer Duarte Carvalho. As mentioned there’s some of The Black Crowes in there as well as some Blind Melon, Led Zeppelin, Mother Love Bone, Soundgarden and even a little bit of Poison in Mamma Told You, gotta love that!
There’s some pretty slick production on the album, which is great but at times it sounds a bit too ‘clean’ for my ears, I usually like more of the dirt left in. I am keen to catch these guys live one day for sure and hear it au naturel.
The Fuzz Drivers signed a worldwide deal with Californian label Ripple Music in July. Ripple have a deep love and understanding of music and have put out some very strong releases from Mos Generator, Ape Machine, Trucker Diablo, Mothership and more.
The band commented in their press release, “Joining the Ripple Music family opens up a whole new exciting chapter for The Fuzz Drivers. Not only are we deeply honoured and humbled to join a roster of amazing bands, but we are thrilled to work with a label with people who love heavy rock and pour their hearts into what they do in a way that is rarely seen these days! With all that energy, love and rock’n’roll combined, we know that amazing things are bound to happen!”
Ripple will be releasing The Fuzz Drivers first and second album on their label in early 2014 which will also include two re-recorded tracks from their debut.
The Fuzz Drivers are:
Marcelo Vieira – vocals.
Sérgio “Mad Mag” – guitar.
João Lopes – bass.
Duarte Carvalho – drums.
Download their self titled debut album HERE for free!
