Tracer – El Pistolero (2013)
Finally: a hard-rocking Australian band that doesn’t shamelessly emulate ‘DC or Rose Tattoo. Three-piece Tracer certainly have all the hallmarks of classic rock, but they’ve got their ears tuned firmly into more modern sounds too. Queens Of The Stone Age get more than a few passing references, as does Detroit garage rock and Audioslave. There are no histrionics here, no slavish Zeppelin hedonism or ‘80s xeroxes. Rather, what Tracer serve up is dry, sun-scorched tones and tunes that reek of hunger. And it kicks like a mule on steroids.
The title-track is dirty, filthy classic rock injected with lashing of bass heavy stoner buzz and bite. ‘Lady Killer’ is a punky bruiser; whilst ‘Dirty Little Secret’ is rock with lots of roll and swing to it – music that engages the ass as much as it does the ears. The band are certainly confident. ‘Dead Garden’ sees them exploring sounds and jamming, whilst ‘Scream In Silence’ takes on a similar updated classic rock sound to Audioslave and demonstrates the sort of control that young bands so rarely possess. In places, you will adore this record: it’s fun, it mostly avoids cliches (‘Wolf In Cheep Clothes Aside’) and it balances fun with depth with considerable aplomb.
It’s certainly not all excellent, however. At 13 tunes it’s a little over-long, and the likes of ‘There’s A Man’ and ‘Santa Cecilia’ are still unconvincingly rough around the edges. But with a band as raw as this, perhaps that’s to be expected. Tracer are a band to whom the idea of polishing hard rock is anathema, and if they’re prepared to leave the nuts and bolts showing, that means that oodles of dirt and groove can seep through. If trading a cool vibe for perfect tunes is the deal, Tracer have chosen wisely, for ‘El Pistolero’ is the sort of record that will make you want to kiss the sun.
Sounds pretty interesting, I will have to check it out.