Wow, that’s how you start an album. With a bang, a sonic boom, a musical sucker punch, and then while the listener is still reeling from the impact, kick into a song like “Lights Are Out” a brilliant blend of rock swagger and pop infectiousness, a poised and polished blend of groove and grit and grind and grandeur. And by the time the liquid lead guitar breaks into its short, sharp, and shockingly great solo, if you haven’t fallen in love with “November 2nd,” both the band and the eponymous album, then perhaps music isn’t for you after all!
November 2nd seems to draw its inspiration from all across the rock and roll map, and beyond it too, able to embrace its heavier high points as easily as it does more considered and creative crossovers, from classic sounds to alternative forms, from anthemic crescendoes to more sedate soundscaping. And it isn’t just genres that are merged, melded, and molded into their signature sound; it is eras, too. Take “All Comes Down” and its 80’s infused pop-rock blends and compare it to “Love Me or Leave Me (TX, TN) with its of-the-moment splicing of gritty rock and futuristic alt-country, and you will see that November 2nd is not a band that is going to play your games of genre or sound or style, No, they are much happier gathering whatever shiny sonic things catch their magpie-like eye to build their musical nest.
“Last Kiss” is old-school blues-rock brought bang up to date, “Dirt in the Ditch” is a new take on dance-groove electro-rock, and “Comet” is a strange balladic infusion of styles – soul, pop, rock, and a guaranteed chart contender, at least it would be if mainstream music was a more discerning place.
November 2nd reminds us that in this post-genre world that we now find ourselves in, genre and geography, sound and style, and even era are demarcations that we don’t have to take any notice of anymore and that the rock band of today is free to flavour their music with any style they want. The result? A cliche-free, accessible, and creative take on what rock music can be in the modern age. How cool is that? I’ll tell you, very cool indeed.
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