This year is really shaping up to be an all-Australian fest on my turntable. Stiff Richards, Civic, and now Jackson Reid Briggs & The Heaters. Man the scene is hot down under.
On their fifth album ‘Waiting In A Corner‘ the band crashes through a 9-song, 32 minute set of fuzzed-out punk rock; a hybrid that draws in the sneer of The Saints with nods to the rock and roll bluster of The Bed Wettin’ Bad Boys and the sonic drive of Red Dons. I’m not sure how many guitarists there are in the band but the instrument is relentlessly employed on this record and along with the subtle keys and a pummeling rhythm section, creates a menacing ear-damaging listening experience.
Sometimes you need something but don’t know what it is until, well you hear it. For me, ‘Too Many Years‘ full-blast in the car is like a salve to counter the weary state of the world. In fact, any of these tracks at a good volume is the answer to pandemic numbness. This is a killer record, from the quick build of the opening instrumental ‘Intro‘ to, you guessed it, the closing instrumental ‘Outro‘ JRB & The Heaters never let up for a second. The songs are crackling with energy and attitude with Briggs’ strained, shouty vocals just barely making it over the din. All you can think of when you are listening to an album like this is: “man, I love rock and roll”.
Out on Drunken Sailor and Legless Records in Australia.
