If you had a dirty, toothless cousin that lived in a rundown trailer at the back of the property who sat around all day spitting, gumming, and cursing with a shotgun resting across his lap, his name would be Only Living Boy. This is the band that The Black Keys are too afraid to become. Only Living Boy’s kind of high octane blues-rock is so filthy that I feel like I need to take a shower after listening to them. They are aggressively in your face, with no apologies, no “I’m just kidding, I don’t really want to kick your ass” sensitivity found all too much with the modern, hipster, feel-good, “let’s all hug it out” shit being put out today. Only Living Boy beats you continuously over the head with hard, no-nonsense, powerful guitar riffs that demand to be played loudly and frequently. They drive straight into the building, in the highest gear, without a thought about even touching the brakes.
Their most recent album, Hide Nothing, does exactly that – it hides absolutely nothing. It is a potent collection of blues-rock that grabs you by the neck from the get-go and doesn’t let you catch your breath once. It doesn’t offer a polite reach-around; it just does what it wants to do with you and when done, walks away unashamedly. The album has its ups and downs, to be sure, but I’ve found that some songs I didn’t necessarily enjoy at one moment, I’ve come back to at a different time and been completely blown away by. Ultimately, that is what enchants me about this album – I might not always be in the right mood for all the songs, but there is always a song to fit all of my moods.
Standout tracks:
Hide Nothing – a dark, moody ode to exposing your soul and loving with everything you have (if a guitar could punch you, this song’s would);
Demon Shuffle Part 1 – R.L. Burnside meets the Backsliders in a little backwoods trundle that makes you want kill someone and steal their moonshine;
My Heart is Burning – this song is all over the place, which is what I love about it, and the Soundgarden-esque heavy riffs are candy to my ears. This album is a refreshing, angst-driven masterpiece and I can’t wait to see what this band does next.
Only Living Boy’s Official Site, Only Living Boy on Facebook, Only Living Boy on Spotify, Buy Hide Nothing
Hoss
I teach Special Education at a local middle school during the day and I bounce at area clubs and music venues at night. I've been involved in the music industry going on 23 years now, in a variety of capacities - tour security, band management, talent buyer, club security, musician - you name it, I've pretty much done it. Music and teaching is my life.
“This is the band that The Black Keys are too afraid to become.”
I love that line.
Money quote!
Thanks for posting this, good stuff. Just – a little too much stereotyping in the review.
is okay. you wanna hug it out?
meh, i’ll pass. i save my hugs for my toothless shotgun toting cuzzins. everyone else i beat the fuck out of and steal their moonshine.
“Makes you want to kill someone and steal their moonshine.”
Album purchased