The Duke Spirit - 'Roll, Spirit, Roll' (City Rockers)
3/5
By: Clara Burtenshaw
Admirably, in an age of flimsy foppishness or potent attempts at 'cool', this EP, the first from heralded newcomers The Duke Spirit, begins with an intensity slow to burn, and quick to raise the stakes.
'Red Weather' should prevent The Kills resting on their laurels with manacled guitar licks atoned only by Liela Moss simpering and seething in haggard counterpart. Good old catharsis in leaps and bounds on this record, notably in the breaks on 'Drinking In You,' an unhinged cacophony of distraught guitars; and on the unnecessary 'X': 32 seconds of heavy breathing that anyone requiring a restraining order will be familiar with.
Elsewhere, the swampy southern roots of the devil's music are revisited on 'Salt The Stings' and 'Howling Self 'is self-explanatory. 'Nine & Scramble' packs a heavy clout with an eerie guitar scraping and the gallop of hooves a constant weight round its neck.
Both atmospheric and disturbing, it would be wise to keep your skeletons shackled, and the spirit of sulphur at arm's length.
Artists in this article: The Duke Spirit
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