Sixty Watt Shaman
Reason To Live
Spitfire
Spitfire Records is a juggernaut in the metal community these days, and the vast majority of releases they put out are brutal. The same cannot be said about the latest from Sixty Watt Shaman.
Reason To Live is a big, greasy haired, pot-bellied guy at a concert, screaming for Sabbath or Molly Hatchet. This is pure late-1970s power rock/ metal stuff, complete with fancy blues solos and southern accents. If you’re into this genre, the sloppy, balls out rock & roll heralded by Black Sabbath, Nashville Pussy, Corrosion Of Conformity, Crowbar, and a handful of bands that sound like The James Gang, then you’ll go nuts over Reason to Live; I, however, do not like this type of stuff, whatsoever.
The lead singer sounds like the lead singer of the band Seven Mary Three (they had a minor hit in the late-‘90s, “Cumbersome”); that guy made me want to drive bamboo shoots under my fingernails, and so does the lead singer for Sixty Watt Shaman. He sounds like he might be into Danzig, too.
The guitars are surprisingly powerful here, a very Marshall amplifier sound with warm tone and lightning fast licks. The drums annoy me, for they are buried and the drummer uses his ride cymbal a bit too often, taking some of the power away from the music. The bass guitar is a total sham. It has a really flat sound, no high end whatsoever. It sounds like the guy plays with his fingers, as well, which sounds weak when compared to bassists who play with picks. Yuck.
I don’t know how to rate this, mainly because I feel like a jerk for saying it’s so bad when fans of this type of stuff might enjoy it. Southern fried rock fans will love this; others, try it for yourself, but I won’t go near it again anytime soon.
Spitfire Records: http://www.spitfirerecords.com
