SoundPress.net CD Review: Black Country Communion

BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION - LIVE OVER EUROPE
A SoundPress.net CD Review

SoundPress.net CD Review: Black Country Communion - Live Over Europe

After Two Albums Supergroup Gets Their Wings!

In the liner notes to Black Country Communion's first live album producer Kevin Shirley says, "There are four elemental forces in the Universe (Earth, Water, Fire, Wind) and they could not have come together by accident".

It's no coincidence than that there's four members of the hard-rocking explosive band also known as BCC. Now, it's up to the listener to determine who's who. The 17-tracks on two discs will go a long way in helping you make that discovery. In the process you'll learn that this is truly a group of substance that really matters!

First and foremost - we give the nod of Earth to the band's keeper of the back beat, Jason Bonham. He is an inheritor of his father's DNA and powerful drumming style. His playing in BCC is rock solid and grounded and he is one of the main reasons this supergroup is being hailed as the logical successor to the Led Zeppelin legacy.

We felt Fire best fit the playing of BCC's secret weapon - the much lauded and fast emerging solo star in his own right - Joe Bonamassa. Joe's signature style is stoked by incendiary riffs and they add combustible fuel to the group's first live album. Bonamassa is hailed at times as the next Clapton and Page and his passion burns out of control or simmers at various points on the release. The first-time listener will find that they call him Smokin' Joe Bonamassa for a reason.

Water and Wind was a toss-up as vocalist and bass player Glenn Hughes and keyboardist Derek Sherinian both embodied aspects of these essential qualities throughout the album.

Hughes is the Deep Purple legend who holds down the bass guitar and lead singer role in BCC. On the CD he's cited for his river-deep vocals and his fluid playing permeates throughout the session. But, he can also howl like the wind behind the mic.

Sherinian is called the keeper of the keys and the rainmaker whose style can delicately shimmer in the background or flood you with a wall of sound from the B3. Alternatively, his playing can underscore the mix like a gentle breeze or help whip the proceedings into a tornadic frenzy.

The album opens with the band's anthem "Black Country" heralding the region of England that Hughes and Bonham hail from followed by the explosive "One Last Soul". "Save Me" adds more hard rock to the mix with a noticeable Zep feel.

Bonamassa takes center stage as the band's secondary lead vocalist on the evocative "The Battle For Hadrian's Wall" and "Song of Yesterday" - his main songwriting offerings from the debut and BCC II.

The album concludes with velocity and density with a double-shot that brings the experiment to an explosive end. First, Hughes and band powers "Man In The Middle" to the point of ecstasy and ultimately - entropy. Then, the Deep Purple Mark III classic "Burn" closes out the set with empirical evidence that this recording and band are a complete success.

When conducting an experiment utilizing the scientific method one of the essential steps is analyzing the data. We have done that with a thorough listening of Live Over Europe. In doing so we discovered that the standout track for us was Black Country Communion's take on Bonamassa's "Who Killed John Henry" which they heavy up with a generous dose of "When The Levee Breaks". Overall, BCC has created a new and organic musical compound from the rockin' raw material provided by its component parts.

In Black Country Communion each member is instrumental and elemental to the group's chemistry. The band that started out as an experiment by producer Shirley has turned into a positively charged unit of talent. By combining the unique individual ingredients of each member a magical musical fusion emerged and BCC became a powerful force to be reckoned with. On the strength of this live release - and the energetic reaction to the music from the European fans - it's clear that BBC will be back Live Over Europe and parts yonder for a long time to come.

• Info: -- USA CA/2012: www.bccommunion.com (Richard J. Lynch/SoundPress.net)

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