With the goal of creating Deep Purple-inspired riffs that would stick in the craws of listeners long after the music stopped, ZZG show potential on Trapped in the Mirror, the Australian band's debut CD. Not Deep Purple potential, but maybe Van Halen-by-way-of-the-Cars potential. Vocalist/guitarist Daniel Roberts sounds a lot like Ric Ocasek (complete with the reverb) and maybe David Bowie, giving ZZG an ultra-melodic retro vibe built on a traditional hard-rock/progressive-metal foundation. ZZG doesn't really stray far from this sound, despite claims in the band's press materials that songs like "Floydian Slip" – there's an original title, gents – evoke Pink Floyd and Yes. "Tom Go To Bed" picks up on the blues, though, and the lively "Prozac Nation" sounds like something Ace Frehley would have recorded with Frehley's Comet (with different lyrics, of course).
It's difficult to pinpoint what audience ZZG is aiming for here, or what the cryptic name even means. But listeners willing to take a chance on something a bit different and adventurous could do a lot worse than spend the 35 minutes it takes to spin these songs. Just know that Trapped in the Mirror is trapped in a time warp.
Track Listing:
1) For the Sky
2) Prozac Nation
3) Tom Go To Bed
4) C'mon Now
5) Point
60 Nous
7) Floydian Slip
Printer Friendly Page
Send to a Friend
