ELECTRIC PEACE

ELECTRIC PEACE -   “Shoot Me!!!”

By Dark Starr

I think this album actually qualifies as progressive rock. I'm sure a number of people, the band probably included in that group, would disagree. I think it fits, though. For one thing, if you take the vocals away, pretty much every song here has some prog elements, and some are very much in line with old-school prog, but done lo-fi. The vocals push it toward angrier, punky zones, but that just adds to the experimental nature of this musical beast. Call it what you like, but this is compelling and intriguing. The band's sound is unique, even if it won't be the right fit for everyone. 

"Shoot Me" is the opener, and  there is a cool retro sound to the musical arrangement on it. It has some funk and some almost proggy things at play. The vocals are more angry, as the cover of the album suggests. Yet, the instrumental breaks are pure old school prog. That same retro proggy concept is on the menu on "Prince of Death on the Freeway." This track reminds me a little of DEEP PURPLE in some ways. The guitar solo and instrumental section that contains it are very much along the lines of DEEP PURPLE to me. That said, it turns into some pure prog rock beyond that for a while before getting into more DEEP PURPLE like zones again. 

There is a traffic update about a motorcyclist down as the song bearing the title "Motorcyclist Down" gets underway. The music powers in frantic, heavy and again seriously on the DEEP PURPLE side of the equation. "Scar for Life" pounds in with a lot of fuzz in the mix. It has an almost ALLMAN BROTHERS vibe to it. There are some serious bits of psychedelia in the mix at times. The guitar soloing again calls to mind the ALLMANS. 

Distortion laden, the rocker titled "You Hear Them Coming" definitely makes me think of THE DOORS. It's a classy number that again gets into proggy territory. The song works out toward space rock near the end. "Ding Dong the Witch is Dead" comes next, and that DOORS thing is on the menu on the tune. It still has some definite prog in the mix, too. There is some noisy guitar soloing later that somehow manages to reinforce the prog concept. It moves away from that DOORS vibe as it intensifies and drives upward with passion and power later. 

While "Every Night I Pray to God that I Die" is more of a driving hard rocking number with more of a punky edge, it does have some more proggy things that are heard via the organ later. Still, it is the least proggy thing here. It's also the most DEAD KENNEDYS-like number. Another that has some DEEP PURPLE sort of tendencies, the closing "I'm a Fly - RAW" is less proggy than some of the rest, even leaning toward metal at times. Yet, the instrumental section does have a prog-like leaning in some ways. 

ELECTRIC PEACE