Los Angeles-based rockers Blacklist Union return with another fine piece of sonic artistry that will unquestionably appeal to anyone who appreciates cleverly assembled and flawlessly performed music. Known for their energetic, groovy, powerful, and modern hard rock sound, their latest effort features twelve compositions that further solidify their position on the contemporary music scene. “Slay The Dragon” is packed with everything you ever needed from the modern hard rock album, but these experienced musicians always find new ways to impress even more. From start to finish, this material shines with some of the finest vocal, sonic, and rhythmic maneuvers you’ll hear in a very long time, and the qualities that meet all the trends in modern music production are there to elevate this listening experience to new heights. Perhaps Blacklist Union dominantly explores the fundamentals of modern hard rock, but you’ll unquestionably notice how some of the finest properties borrowed from hard ‘n’ heavy, glam, grunge, metal, alternative, and other similar styles found their way into this sonic equation. Tony West and the remainder of the band use all these elements as enhancements and decorations to elevate this comprehensive collection of songs to new heights while simultaneously remaining loyal to the primary sonic direction. Although Blacklist Union dominantly explored modern rock, you’ll notice how they implemented subtle touches of nostalgia, evoking eighties and nineties rock at some points, two significant eras where hard rock unquestionably ruled the airwaves. They thought about everything while working on this material, resulting in a catchy, memorable, addictive, hypnotic, engaging listening experience worth repeating over and over again.
From the onset, it becomes apparent that Blacklist Union used various approaches, different techniques, and complementary genres while writing, composing, arranging, and producing these songs. Each composition arrives with perfect structure, adorned with many profoundly detailed segments, brilliant ideas, and marvelous orchestrations, making this listening experience even more pleasant to the ears. Of course, Tony West’s superb vocal performance serves as a centerpiece, elevating every track to new heights, commanding attention, and leading listeners on an epic voyage through Blacklist Union’s powerful, energetic, groovy sound from scratch to finish. His impressive vocal range seamlessly balances low, mid, and high notes with such precision and finesse, emphasizing everything the remainder of the band intended to achieve with this material. Besides decorating all those segments and instrumentations, he also contributes more than necessary emotional depth and complexity to an already intricate song structure. You’ll also hear how the additional vocal layers, back vocals, and sing-alongs bring more anthemic vibes to the particular segments. In the meantime, the guitars reign supreme by shaping a luxuriant backdrop for all the vocals to shine upon. You’ll notice how all those leads, themes, melodies, harmonies, and other sonic maneuvers shine on one side while the other offers heavy and powerful riffs and chord progressions. It’s nearly mindblowing how all these layers articulate together without overwhelming each other. The generous servings of distortion contribute rawness, abrasion, grittiness, and aggression to this soundscape, making “Slay The Dragon” suitable not only to hard rock fans but also those leaning towards much heavier underground music genres. Still, Blacklist Union also knows how to slow and mellow things down, so there are also some marvelous, impressive, ethereal ballads included along the way.
Of course, this fine piece of sonic artistry wouldn’t sound complete without a rock-solid rhythm section. You’ll notice how all those vividly hearable, profoundly detailed, warm-sounding, intricate basslines rumble beneath the guitars, offering more than necessary heaviness, clarity, and depth while serving as a binding element between the mentioned instrumentations and rhythmic patterns. These rich, deep, dense, and heavy low-ends contribute more groove and detail, making this material even more powerful. The exceptional drumming performance, based upon tastefully arranged, flawlessly performed, well-accentuated beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics, keeps everything in line while simultaneously dictating groove and pace. Each hit of the snare drum, kick of the bass drum, accentuation on the hi-hat, and splash over the cymbals cuts the ambiance, making this material more dynamic. As you can see, Blacklist Union thought about everything while working on this material. They poured heart and soul into each vocal, sonic, and rhythmic maneuver, showcasing their tremendous performance and songwriting from scratch to finish. While the entire material deserves your utmost attention, tracks like “Mississippi Moonhound,” “Up In Smoke,” “Can You Heal Me,” “Do It For The Song,” “Free At Last,” “Horns And Halos,” “X Marks The Spot,” and “Slay The Dragon” are just some of the standout tracks, and I highly advise you to listen to this material from scratch to finish. “Slay The Dragon” is one of the finest modern hard rock albums in recent years and definitely the best rock record you’ll hear in a very long time. Therefore, head to your favorite streaming platforms and listen to it loud!
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