Blues
Anyone that has seen Ash Grunwald in concert knows that he’d only ever have to continue to bottle the lightning energy from his concerts to create a great album. Ash’s latest album, Fish Out of Water, captures that raw energy and remains faithful to the muddy Delta blues sound that forms the basis of his previous work.
The influence of Howlin’ Wolf is clear but Ash creates unique contemporary blues with a stomping junk percussion rhythm and surfing themes woven throughout the album. There is a range of styles in the songs on this album from the chain gang industrial sound of Can U Find a Way to the slow acoustic gospel of Give Something Away, sung with a preachers desperation. There is range of emotions in the songs too, from the fast paced fun and funk of Mojo to the dark relationship regrets within The Devil Called Me a Liar.
It’s hard not to smile when listening to some of Ash’s tongue in cheek lyrics. In Breakout he sings "I had to learn it all from the school of hard knocks but now I left myself with concussion". Another gem lyric is found in the alcohol fuelled roadhouse blues track The Bottle: "until the bottle runs out I got plenty of spirit left".
Ash shares the writing credit on five tracks with Pip Norman, aka Countbounce, from TZU. The five tracks Norman has influenced all hold a stronger beat and hip hop style loop that adds a freshness and energy to the album.
The stand out track on the album for me is the acoustic ballad Port Campbell which delivers heartache poetry about surfing and then life regrets and longing as a surfer is dumped and tumbled by the a wave. This album is a wild ride and Ash rides this wave with ease.
By Andrew Rudge.
**
01. Can U Find
02. Mojo
03. Fish Out Of Water
04. Give Something Away
05. Devil
06. Joke On Me
07. Breakout
08. Working Hard
09. The Bottle
10. Get What U Want
11. Port Campbell
12. Shake
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