Ah, it’s finally here. After a three-year gap, the Kentucky greats have released their fourth LP, the 13 track long Magic Mountain, featuring the singles “Me and Mary Jane” and “Runaway”; and yes, the rest of the songs on the album are just as amazing. Personal favourites for me include the hard rocking “Me and Mary Jane“, the soulful. “Sometimes“, and the country fueled “Hollywood in Kentucky“.
As the band have said in an interview with “Classic Rock Magazine”, their record label gave them complete freedom on this record, and its easy to tell when you compare it to the 2011 record “Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea” which some call their radio friendly album, as this album features a lot more of the bands earlier sound. The album starts off with the song “Holding On… To Letting Go” which kicks off the song, and the album, with a classic BSC bass line, closely followed by the rest of the band joining in before we are introduced to Robertson’s unmistakable vocals.
Me and Mary Jane is track four, and the first single to drop for the album. The song features, in my opinion, the best riff I’ve heard in a while, with, again, the classic BSC sound. Featuring the anthemic chorus and catchy melodies, the song comes to a close with an amazing blues rock solo duel between Robertson and Wells. It’s easy to tell why the band released this as the first single to promote the album. And make sure you check out the acoustic version which the band released on their YouTube channel.
Between here and track nine are a collection of similarly hard rocking tracks, especially with the hard metal sounding track seven “Never Surrender”. Track nine on the album, “Sometimes” is one of my top three tracks on the album, featuring beautiful acoustics and an echoey slide guitar, topped off with Robertson’s vocals. Incredible beauty comes in the form of the solo – violins and the sweet melody of the slide guitar behind it – before coming back to Robertson’s powerful vocals. I’ve thought it in the past, but this track has made me hope more than ever for an acoustic LP or EP.
Jumping three tracks lands us at “Hollywood in Kentucky”, the final track in my top three from Magic Mountain. I’d say that this is most definitely the bands homage to their home state, which is fairly obvious when looking at the tracks title. This is also seen from the content of the song, with country-esque leads, vocals and rhythm. Whilst maybe not as anthemic of a chorus as that in Me and Mary Jane, it is definitely just at catchy.
Overall, this album is one of the bands bests – I’d personally say it’s their best, but everybody will have their own opinion. After a release date in Europe on the 4th of May and in the US on the 5th, the album is available everywhere now, so be sure to pick it up – you owe it to yourself.
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