Aaron Buchanan And The Cult Classics

I first came across Aaron Buchanan and The Cult Classics earlier this year and the thing that really came to me from their support set - supporting Bad Touch – was the sheer belief and commitment in the music. This was music with real explosive power and throat busting energy.

This was originally released via Pledge Music but they have now been picked up by Listenable Records and the album is being reissued with a couple of bonus studio tracks – the CD will also include 3 live tracks.

I hear definite influences in their sound – Buchanan quotes Soundgarden and the grunge scene as a major influence and you can hear echoes of Muse as well – and they mix attacking power with pomp and reach but I also hear a band whose music comes from the heart and who play for each other.

Buchanan is on vocals with his sibling Laurie on guitar and vocals plus Tom McCarthy (guitar), Paul White (drums), Mart Trail (bass) and their sound – to me – is really complementary. No one player features above the rest but White’s huge drum sound gives the music a real blast of drive. Buchanan’s vocals are classic rock bellow crossed with a certain level of subtlety when needed.

The standout number is probably the title track but I found myself going back a few times to ‘Left Me For Dead’ which really captures the grunge feel and ‘Morals?’ with its huge soundscape and dense atmosphere and Freddie Mercury-esque vocals.

All told, a very good album that shows a lot of potential – given the breaks, these guys could be massive.