Greta Van Fleet Black Smoke Rising: An Album a Day

An Album a Day is posted 5 days a week, Monday-Friday

    Today we’re looking at a band with a very familiar sounding lead singer. The band is called Greta Van Fleet, they are a blues based hard rock band from Frankenmuth, Michigan. The band consists of three brothers, Sam, Jake and Josh Kiszka as well as drummer Danny Wagner. The band’s overall style is blues and folk based hard rock, with obvious classic rock influence from bands like AC/DC and Led Zeppelin.

    While they are a pretty good rock band in their own right, the thing that really sets them apart is lead singer Josh Kiszka’s vocals. When I say it’s obvious they are influenced by Led Zeppelin, I mean it; Josh sounds almost identical to Robert Plant. While there are plenty of singers who try to sound like Plant, or have a similar vocal range to him, Josh Kiszka sounds like he could actually be Robert Plant at times. The track Flower Power is particularly impressive as the whole band gets into a very Zeppeliny sound.

    So far they have only released one EP, entitled Black Smoke Rising so we’re going to look at those four tracks. The first song Highway Tune is driven by a southern blues guitar riff that is somewhere between classic rockers like the Allman Brothers and something newer like The Black Keys. This is probably the most modern sounding song on the EP, with Josh utilizing a rapid fire staccato singing style on this one. Another thing to note about this band is how huge the drums sound on every track, and unlike Imagine Dragons they sound like actual mic’d up drums and not samples.

On track 2, Safari Song  Josh starts sounding almost identical to Robert Plant and the music matches the classic rock delivery. The frantic guitar and basslines hold the song together while Wagner plays fills through the majority of the verses, dancing from one end of his kit to the next. These guys have nailed the sloppy and loose feel that Zeppelin had, which is in stark contrast to the tight and overly perfect music of today. The guitar solos on this EP have a primal energy to them as Jake Kiszka plays in a very loose way that fits the style of music perfectly and keeps the sloppy feel of the EP.

Next we have the dynamic Flower Power which is the most Led Zeppelin track on the EP, complete with mildly nonsensical fantasy lyrics. The use of organ and tambourine adds the folk element that they were missing and also adds an element of progression so that when the song exploded into a raw guitar solo it feels like a gut punch. Speaking of which, this solo is the best guitar moment on the album as it is sandwiched by two much softer parts and just rips the song to pieces. Jake Kiszka’s loose and raw soloing works the best on this track as it has all of the momentum and buildup of the song behind it.

The last track which is also the title track is the song that sounds the most like a classic rock inspired song and not like something that came out in the 70s. While the Led Zeppelin elements are still there, this song doesn’t sound like something Zeppelin would do. There is a certain twanginess to Josh’s vocals here that lends a bluegrass or country element to their sound. While the track itself might not be the best on the EP, I believe it is the one that best represents these guys own sound, aside from the classic rock bands they listen to.

To be clear, these guys aren’t a Zeppelin tribute band, if you want that go listen to SoZo. But there are a lot of similarities between their sound and Zeppelin’s, especially the lead vocals. I think this is a damn fine EP, and I can’t wait to hear their full album. It will be cool to see if they branch off and explore their own sound more or delve further into the classic rock sound. Either way, check these guys out.
GretaVanFleet.comAlbum on Google Play
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Uriah Heep Wizards and Demons: An Album A Day

An Album A Day is released 5 days a week, Monday-Friday

Today we are looking at the 197- album by heavy metal band Uriah Heep, Demons and Wizards. This band debuted only a few years after more well known early metal bands like Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. This coupled with the band always having to compete with these other bands means that most people don’t usually mention Uriah Heep when talking about early metal bands. This makes Uriah Heep one of the most underrated classic metal bands of all time, and Demons and Wizards is considered by most to be their best album.

Stylistically, Uriah Heep sit somewhere between Zeppelin and Deep Purple, with a folk and hard rock sound dominated by huge organs and keyboards. That’s not to say that they don’t have their own sound, but they do share a lot of similarities with those two bands. Uriah Heep also have a lot of elements that predict future metal and rock stylings, such as the operatic vocals that would be common in power metal and arena rock. Some of the guitar solos on this album, particularly on The Spell, remind me of Avenged Sevenfold.

This album features Uriah Heep’s biggest hit, the song Easy Livin’ which fits nicely in with other classic rock music and artists. Easy Livin’ has all of the hallmarks of Uriah Heep’s sound, but it’s a bit shorter and less progressive than a lot of their other tracks, making it more digestible on a classic rock station. Other tracks off of this album of particular note are Rainbow Demon, All My Life and The Spell.

Rainbow Demon is a track that shows some of the progressive rock sound that Uriah Heep are known for. The track starts off with a plodding drum beat that calls to mind a church bell ringing with only organ and vocals accompanying the drums. The lyrical style either influenced or predicted bands like Dio and Iron Maiden with the same level of vaguely spiritual or mythical lyrics sang like an epic. The track closes out with an extended blues rock guitar solo and one execution of the chorus.

All My Life is an interesting track that sounds like Led Zeppelin for the first half before turning into hair metal meets gospel for the second half. The first half is a strongly blues based rock track with some folk elements, while the second half is taken over by organs and choirs that drive home a powerful gospel feeling. Lead singer David Byron shows of his upper range, hitting some ridiculously high notes during the songs crescendo.

The last track on this album The Spell is one of the strongest tracks on the album. Despite having a very upbeat piano riff leading most of the song, it deviates off into various interludes including a nearly 2 minute long guitar solo. The thing that I really like about these guys is even when they have the opportunity to go nuts and be overtly flashy they still use restraint and play tastefully so as to benefit the song. Rather than having different sections that go in a million directions with everyone showing off, the song has movements much like a classical piece.

While they may not be remembered as readily as other bands of their day, such as Sabbath or Zeppelin, Uriah Heep are a top notch early metal and prog act who absolutely deserve a listen. These guys are still making new music and touring to this day, albeit with a different lineup than during the classic years. It really is a shame that they don’t get more recognition, because if this album is any indication a lot of people don’t know what they’re missing.

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