King Harvest & The Weight - Maps
6/10
King Harvest & The Weight is a vehicle for Halifax native Ben Adey. Adey is clearly well connected. Collaborators on debut album Maps include associates of Erland & The Carnival, Simone Felice, Peter Gabriel and Queen. For all the talent on show, this is a bit of an odd one. Part of me thinks this is brilliant but another part of me is cringing at just how damned retro it is.
Highlights are Dream and New York Is Dangerous, the former a delicious hybrid of Thin Lizzy and Cockney Rebel, the latter a dark, soul-rock hybrid. Opener Howl is a spoken word piece, read by Mike (Minutemen/Stooges) Watt. When It Stops is a garage rock take on Zep. This Town is Humble Pie style blues rock. Roads is curiously reminiscent of Skynrd’s Freebird. Morning Light and While I’m High come on like Drive-By Truckers. Thin Lizzy come to mind again on Diana. The remaining tracks are the kind of soft rock that was so big in the States in the 70s.
Adey is clearly talented but he needs to find his own sound and voice. If he does, when he does, he could set the world alight. For now, this is by no means bad, just derivative.
