PILEDRIVER – Rockwall
- Posted on 15-11-2018
The German outfit Piledriver used to be a Status Quo tribute act, but nowadays they do albums containing original material. However, it has to be said that their own songs certainly have the Status Quo blueprint to them and possess all the boogie rock ‘n’ roll trademarks that we associate with the aforementioned legends.
This 13-track record of their named "Rockwall" is loaded with groovy and bouncy riffs that draw on blues rock and classic 70s rock, which is to say pounding drums and crashing cymbals, anthemic choruses and blistering solos, juicy bass lines and Quo-esque vocals, and so on and so forth. The sound is crisp and clear with every instrument being clearly audible and prominent in the mix. In fact, "Rockwall" sounds nothing short of massive in places, but even though their tunes are catchy and easy on the ear not to mention filled with hooks, they lack staying power and atmosphere. There is drive and energy here, but the entire affair comes across as fairly one-dimensional and at times even tiresome. Perhaps it is simply too derivative of the mighty Quo?
Piledriver consists of talented musicians who know their way around an instrument and there are a few cool tracks to be found on this album, namely "One for the Rock", "Farewell", "Draw the Line", and "Sparks", but then there is some truly horrible material too in the shape of "For Freedom and Friends". The rest of the cuts are somewhat mediocre and leave no lasting impression.
Lovers of boogie rock should probably check this one out, but the rest of you are not missing out on anything special or essential.