85%
Having been forced to cool their heels for over two years doesn’t seem to have diluted the indomitable rock and roll spirit of Dead City Ruins.
Always a band that knew its way around a classic-styled heavy-riffing rock and roll tune, Shockwave in no way lets the side down, its twelve tracks giving the band a fresh sound and impetus. The rhythmic grooves of early singles Preacher and The Sorcerer hold echoes of previous releases, but Dead City Ruins is quite a different band from the one that made Never Say Die, most notably in the vocal department.
Jake Wiffen was a powerful singer but Steve Welsh has a wider range and a feel much more his own that the band has taken complete advantage of. Shockwave sees Dead City Ruins unleashing a solid string of 80s-influenced thunder that takes their sound to new levels and exploring newer territories. Nestled between the flat-out highway rocker Speed Machine and the arena-styled, shout-it-out fist-pumper Dog On a Leash, Rain goes in a smokey, bluesier direction. Tracks like End of the Line and This Side of the Dirt fulfil high energy rock and roll urges that are tempered by mid-paced stompers like Madness and Spiders, which shows off a grungier side of Dead City Ruins without taking them too far away from their classic hard rocking style.
No matter where they go, however, there’s plenty of catchy bass grooves, metal-edged riffing, attitude and swagger, and the now-long standing guitar team Tommy Cain and Sean Blanchard trade plenty of flare and fiery licks. Dead City Ruins have been at the game for quite a while now, and Shockwave is probably their defining moment.
