Brett Ellis Band: Electrified Live

With a gaggle of albums to his name, guitar master Brett Ellis and his Band have decided to hit the stage and get Electrified Live! And no wonder, for this fifteen track live monster positively crackles with energy. Ellis coaxing and cajoling his guitar into submission through a passionate display that has you kicking yourself that you weren't at the Navajo Live in San Diego when this album was recorded in June 2015.

Any live show should hit the ground running, hence "Keeping The Rock Alive" - a song that name-checks the label in question here, Grooveyard Records, for doing exactly as the songs says – was made for this setting. Powering and passionate, Ellis, along with drummer Calvin Lakin and bassist Rick Nash know how to lay it down thick, build the intensity and then drive their message home through the Hendrix like, with its "Crosstown Traffic" 'doo-doo-doo-doo-dooo-doooooo' tip of the hat, "Freedom" being the purely liberating experience its name suggests. "Empty Bottle" then plays to Ellis's Blues strengths, bringing the vibe in close and claustrophobic, before "Angel" ramps up the energy once more.

Hendrix remains a constant touching point, hut then so does Robin Trower and Frank Marino, a truly authentic style then given a hefty hoof up the jacksy through an injection of heavy rockin' power. Ellis may not be the most naturally gifted singer, his voice not quite possessing the clarity a vocal specialist might give. However what he does provide is a heartfelt delivery that brings the songs to life in a way the best vocalists out there would struggle to match. Something which "Nine Tons Of Soul" benefits from hugely. "Make It Rain" takes things down a different path, a Richie Blackmore infused guitar intro making way for something a little Deep Purple like, well if Deep Purple had been born in heavy rocking blues territory that is. While for "20 in 5", Nash and Larkin are both invited front and centre for classy, short solo sections where neither waste one single second. However when the trio get together to power the show to its conclusion, "End Of Tears" and "Crazy Wild Child" sure as hell take no prisoners.

I'm not sure there's another single style of music that thrives in the live setting quite as strongly as hard hitting blues rock. So plug in and get set for the blues-shock of Electrified Live!

Track Listing
1. KEEPING THE ROCK ALIVE

2. STONE COLD KILLER

3. FREEDOM

4. EMPTY BOTTLE

5. ANGEL

6. GUILTLESSLY FREE

7. NINE TONS OF SOUL

8. MY OWN WAY

9. 20 IN 5 (WITH BASS/DRUM SOLOS)

10. ELECTRIFIED MUSIC

11. MAKE IT RAIN

12. END OF TEARS

13. CRAZY WILD CHILD

Added: February 22nd 2016
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Electrified Live at The Grooveyard
Hits: 2569
Language: english

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