If the previous single, “Digitize,” was Gary Dranow reminding us that he was just as able to move with the times as anyone else, “I’m a Man” sees him return to the sound and style that we most closely associate him with, blues-driven, boogie-grooved rock. It’s okay for artists to stretch their musical muscles and spread their creative wings from time to time; in fact, it is essential, but this single feels like Gary getting back to his roots, the prodigal son returning.
Why? Because this is a style that he does so well, so effortlessly, so succinctly. “I’m a Man” has everything you expect from music made at the collision point of electric blues and heavy rock. It has the same swagger as Southern Rock’s great and good, though whether this is Southern Rock is open for debate. But what I do know is this. It grooves effortlessly. It is infectious and addictive. It looks you in the eye and dares you not to hit the dance floor and start throwing some moves. It is fuelled by warm yet incendiary guitars, pulsing, melodic bass lines, and thundering drums. It is the very definition of heads-down-no-nonsense-mindless-boogie. There is plenty of life left in the old 12-bar format yet, it would seem.
Anything that puts me in mind of the likes of Stevie Ray Vaughan can only be a good thing, right? Quite right! With “I’m a Man”, Gary Dranow proves, without a doubt, that he’s the man!
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