Collateral

There was some really bad music in the eighties and nineties but the one scene that was strong throughout was the hard rock scene in the US and Collateral seem to me to be a celebration of the genre – loaded with sass and attitude but no way short of musical power and quality.

Angelo Tristan’s vocals have all the sneering brattishness of the best spandex rockers, coupled with the ability to add sensitivity on a track like ‘Midnight Queen’ or ‘Get Back To You’, while Todd Winger wields a mighty axe and lays down solo after solo that really hit the mark. Jack Bentley-Smith’s bass lines are melodious and fluid and Ben Atkinson’s drumming has a snap and punch to punctuate the music with ease.

The influences the boys claim range from Country to 80’s rock and Southern rock and all four of them contributed tracks so that the album doesn’t get stuck in any one form.

‘Mr Big Shot’ has all the swagger and strut of GNR coupled with the melodies and harmonies of Poison while ‘Merry Go Round’ has a lot of the Black Crowes in the sound and ‘Won’t Stop Me Dreaming’ has a ZZ Top riff alongside Bon Jovi-esque vocals and backing.

This isn’t a new type of Rock but it is a fine album from a band who have belief and heart that is clear in every track.