If you needed any further proof that sounds and styles and genres and scenes are all pointless demarcations and that the best things happen where one or more of these creatively crash into another, then the new album from Poke A Brain should settle the debate. Although Refinement 2026 errs on the side of kick-arse rock and roll, the other genres threaded through it are what make this album stand out from the crowd. Rock ‘n’ roll ‘n’ pop ‘n’ soul ‘n’…well, you get the idea.
Opening salvo, ‘Wild West’ might sound like Bon Scott fronting a golden-age grunge band, but ‘With Strings Attached,’ which follows, owes more to the world of the sassy soul diva, even with the more scathing, distant guitar sounds underpinning the mellifluous melodies.
Similarly, the shift from the raw, riotous hard rock of ‘Pearl’ to the delicate folk-pop sweetness of ‘When You Were Around’ shows just how far across the sonic spectrum Poke A Brain is willing to travel to make the music they want to make.
And if ‘Midlife’ sits between hard rock and a more commercially accessible sound, ‘Lost Cowboy’ is a decidedly delicate ballad full of sweeping strings and cool guitar motifs, but more importantly, space and atmosphere. ‘January’ then puts the album to bed with a seriously warped, psychedelic instrumental workout…Frank Zappa, eat your heart out!
Why stay in your lane when you can off-road all over the place? Why concentrate on one final destination when it is more fun to enjoy the ride? Why limit yourself to one tag, label, sound, or style when they are all readily available to you? Why indeed?
