ALBUM REVIEW: Screaming Eagles roar to next level on Stand Up And Be Counted

THERE’S nothing new in this world - or so the saying goes. And, there are those that would argue that in the field of hard rock there is nothing new.

To some extent they might be right – it’s guitars, drums and singing; but in every other aspect the saying is wrong, as Screaming Eagles prove on their sophomore release ‘Stand Up and Be Counted’.

How you write and play hard rock determines whether you have added your own creative weight, and whether you have the ability and songs that make the listener stop in their tracks and get ready to raise their fists in salute to you. Screaming Eagles have achieved this.

With talent in abundance, as proved on their début release, this time they have upped their game, with superb playing, better song composition and a mature approach to their craft.

Album closer ’27 Club’ and ‘Breaking All The Rules’ are just two examples of how Screaming Eagles are spreading their rock wings and getting ready to ride the air to further success.

They are also not afraid to acknowledge their influences - the album title, and track of the same name are a direct nod to AC/DC (it's the first line of 'For Those About to Rock), and throughout there are references to classic hard rock bands.

But this is no slavish rehash of the same old riffs and hooks: no this is bringing hard rock bang up to date; fresh sounding, raucous and proud. No better example of this is the lead single 'Save Me' with its creative arrangement, slick solo and a hook that will snag you into its delightful refrain.

Lyrically the album also showcases grit and angst, as well as insight that rarely finds its way on to recording - add in Chris Fry's vocals makes for a killer album. This time Fry has elevated his work to a higher plain.

The same could be said for Adrian McAleenan's guitar work. McAleenan has always been acknowledged as one of the top rock guitarists in the land. On 'Stand Up And Be Counted' he has developed his tone and added more diversity to his sound, with the title track showcasing those in the perfect context.

Underpinning it all is the rhythm section. It rocks and rolls, holding the whole album together like gaffa tape. Ryan Lilly (bass) and Kyle Cruikshank (drums) have added a new groove such as on 'Bow Down To The Blues' and the eponymous 'Screaming Eagles'.

That track is worthy of note - it's not about the band, but rather the US Army's 101st Airborne Division, whose nickname is the Screaming Eagles. What could have been a cheesy track ends up as a chest-thumping anthem.

Track by track there is an abundance of what fans of rock want - and need. But taken as a whole this a huge step up in writing and performance; add the production and mastering by Russ Cullen and you have a winner.

Stand Up And Be Counted is available digitally now from the usual online stores and the bands site.

Review by Jonny

 

 

The Answer awe Ahoghill with searing Screaming Eagles

THE Answer are a product of their environment, and that environment is in front of a live, awestruck audience, and there is no more an adulation than they receive in Ahoghill's Diamond Rock Club.

Last night (Saturday 25th January) the quartet of hard rockin' troubadors were on stage kicking the kinks out of their set before heading out on a lengthy 'Road Less Travelled Tour',  which as Cormac explains in the interview below will see them play venues that many bands miss out on tour schedules across the UK and Ireland.

He also explains how they are mixing things up, trying new interpretations of songs. Click the man's name to go to the Soundcloud file and hear all the frontman's thoughts ahead of the tour and six-string slinger Paul's thoughts: Cormac

Part of the plans for the tour as Cormac explained is to give local bands exposure and throughout the tour in Northern Ireland and Ireland will see a different support act every night.

Tonight at the Diamond Rock the Screaming Eagles hit the stage as if they had a point to prove - a point that many of the audience know all too well. A commitment to hard rocking blues infused power that has seen them win through on the Highway to Hell challenge which has earned them a prestigious slot at Hard Rock Hell. (Next week the Northern Ireland winners and contestants - The Screaming Eagles, Sinocence, Maverick and Baleful Creed will play at RockD in Limelight 2.)

With début album From the Flames well known to most of the audience, those not already fans of the 'Screagles' were quicky won over. Fight the Fire, Devil in the Dust, and Rock 'n' Roll Soul stood out in a well balanced set.

The key to real hard rock success is to play as if you are in front of a stadium crowd, no matter which stage you are on. The intimate Diamond setting saw Chris's dominant vocals and stage presence soar with Adrian's licks and moves showing a real winning attitude. Nailed down with Ryan and Kyle's rhythm section this was a simply searing show.

Playing to a sold out crowd is nothing new to The Answer, but when it is in a venue such as the Diamond there is a vibrant atmosphere, almost alive with an electric charge reeling across the heads of the crowd as they were awed by Cormac and his fellow rockers.

Kicking off with a surprise version of The Road Less Travelled the set quickly kicked into a high gear with the title track of the album New Horizon, a life affirming piece of excellence that sees almost the entire crowd singing along/.

While this shows was to road test new arrangements and the pace of the set, it also once again showed that the County Down have a lengthy set of material to draw upon, its breadth not diminshing the quality of the material.

However, no matter how great The Answer are on recordings (and they consistently are) they are a band that explode with a beautiful alchemy when they tread the boards. And with a cover of Rory Gallagher's Cradle Rock thrown in it was a night of celebrating the craft that is in all good rock.

With Cormac a cross between a yeti, tigger and the emobdiment of every great singer brought into one superb package, Paul and Micky traded rhythms and licks, with Paul's soloing and freedom to explore new approaches a feature of the show.

James's drums have always been pounding, and as Cormac explained before the show their (see interview above) 'heaviest song' Concrete kicked off with a well-timed drum solo before this slab of heavy rock theatened to shake the Diamond to its foundations as well as most of the village.

A new slower paced Nowhere Highway, the ode to youth that is Spectacular, Under the Sky and Dead of Night all raising the temperature, Memphis Blues was akin to a jam session to allow a short breather for the audience..

But as with everything on a warm-up show something inevitably goes awry - a missing slide for Paul's guitar meant the band's first attempt at Preaching was aborted - but with a storming version of Demon Eyes Cormac's trademark crouch on the floor with the audience still went ahead.

When it seemed the show was all but over, the slide was discovered and Preaching got underway, and every vocal chord in the Diamomd strained to join Cormac as he once again joined the audience in the middle of the floor to round off what was simply a demonstration of just how far The Answer have come. Great people, great musicians, a great performance - the audiences on the 'Road Less Travelled Tour are in for a hard rock treat.

Washing away the pain as the Eagles swoop

ON the Screaming Eagles début platter, From the Flames, the refrain comes from vocalist Chris Fry that he can’t “…wash away your pain”. But rest assured that if you want to relief from your pains through the cathartic power of rock ‘n’ roll the Screaming Eagles are up to the task.

From the Flames is an album infused with the riff, paying homage to the masters of hard rock with a whiskey glass in hand and a beer chaser nearby – where the anarchic is tamed by a rhythm section, and the guitar tone is torturously balanced between sweet soloing and sleazy riffing.

At times it does pay a little too much homage to the likes of AC/DC, especially on the second track ‘Down the River’ with vocal intonations close to Mr Scott; but that is nit-picking at an extreme level – and it is homage rather than slavishly following a template.

Instead this is a slab of portentous power, which builds and builds and gets better with every listen.

The first four tracks are enough to please the most ardent rock ‘n’ roller, but it is when ‘Vampire’ bites into your aural senses that Screaming Eagles find their real fangs and identity. This is the Northern Irish take on blues drenched hard rock; it’s the Lagan delta not the Mississippi flood plains that formulate the power clout. Down and dirty, menace and passion - the Eagles are coming to rescue us from the mundane.

Golden Eagles were the deux ex machine used by Tolkien in so many of his works, from their role in the coda of the Hobbit, through to rescuing Gandalf and their contribution to the battle at the gates of Mordor. The Screaming Eagles could have been dreamt up by an author to be the plot saviours for all of us fed up with auto-tuned bimbos and play-by-numbers metalcore.

‘Devil in the Dust’ in particular sneaks into your very black heart, with a chorus that nibbles into your consciousness and a structure that reflects the best of rock.

And the flag of rock is proudly perched at the promised land on ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Soul’ – like Marines at Iwa Jimo Screaming Eagles hold the standard of rock aloft and shove aside the doubters - salvation does indeed come from a six-string.

Overall From the Flames is a statement of rock – a statement that you may sideline hard rock and metal, you may deny us the airplay, you may shun our long hair and anachronistic ways, you may walk by us in your business suit or party dress, but you will never stop us rockin’, and you will never stop us loving the rock.

Chris Fry’s impressive pipes, Adrian McAleenan’s finely crafted playing and the tight as a shark’s ass rhythm section of Ryan Lilly (bass) and Kyle Cruikshank (drums) deliver an album that grows on you gradually before smashing its way into your sensitivities. If some ‘lame ass’ Yank band or average Englander rock type recorded this distribution deals would be proffered and hyperbole would spill from the national magazines. If there is justice in this world these will follow for Screaming Eagles.

Once again Northern Ireland has shown that we are a tiny slab of the land on the outer rim of Western Europe that has more talent in our 1.8million population when it comes to rock and metal. Screaming Eagles are worthy of their place on the roll call of Norn Irish hard rock excellence.

That pain you may be suffering will not be taken away by music, but From the Flames will wash it away for a while, as you wallow in rock ‘n’ roll and you find that it is better than any pain killer of anti-depressant.

Copies of ‘From the Flames’ are available from the band’s site for the princely sum of five of those pounds sterling. The album will also be on sale at forthcoming Screaming Eagles gigs.