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Written by Jason Neubauer Friday, 04 September 2009 05:07

The Stone Foxes resurrecti the sweat-soaked power blues of the 1970s and mix it with late-'60s folk rock influences to bring back the true grit of rock 'n' roll.

Music can make you taste sour mash whiskey and smell the unwashed attitude of a smoky barroom in some out-of-the-way roadhouse with a parking lot full of motorcycles. The Stone Foxes invoke those senses through a resurrection of the sweat-soaked power blues of the 1970s in their self-titled debut album, and mix it with late-'60s folk rock influences to bring back the true grit of rock 'n' roll that was illustrious of its evolution into a harder-edged genre of music that became prevalent in the following years.

Kickoff track "Beneath Mt. Sinai" oozes with a dirty coolness punctuated by a persistent guitar riff, driving the song through hooks and bridges and tying the rhythm section together to establish the band's talent from the very start. In this, as in the subsequent 11 tracks, all four members of the band vocalize and create a unique sound that belongs to a group of men at least 20 years older and another 30 years more hardened.

Tracks like "Mercury" and "Sweep a Road" give us a break from the heavier sound that predominates the rest of the album with softer yet still introspective music. If the heavier songs are shots of whiskey taken in single gulps, the softer ones are sips from a Collins glass while sitting quietly alone. They are indicative of a lyrical maturity normally reserved by those who have at least two or three albums behind them, and fill out the dynamic of the band as more than just a handful of grudge-driven miscreants.

To be certain, it's a fair guess that we will be hearing from the Stone Foxes a lot in the next few years. The confidence and authority that fills their songs is the precursor to a career that will bring them to a wide audience, and as much as it's a bad idea to write a review that includes predictions like these, it should be said: The Stone Foxes are going to make it big. A | Jason Neubauer

RIYL: The Black Keys, The Black Crowes, Kenny Wayne Shepherd