These heavy hitters from South Carolina were
totally unknown to me, prior to Snake Charmer Coalition giving their
self-titled EP an official release. And man, I'm so glad they did and
subsequently introduced me to this bunch. No holds barred, diesel and whiskey
infused, filthy heavy rock in the vein of Beaten Back To Pure, Nashville Pussy,
Weedeater et al is what's on offer here. Thieving Coyote aren't reinventing the
wheel, instead they put the pedal to the metal, kick ass and have a blast while
doing so. As a consequence, they give the old guard, who has been flying the
flag high for this particular genre, a run for the money, and then some. And
that's great because all music genres need a kick up the backside by fresh
blood to spice things up and keep other bands on their toes. Which is exactly
what these guys are doing...and they do it so well.
Not taking any prisoners,
the band goes wide fucking open right away with opener ‘White Lightning’ and keep it that way until the last song, ‘Lizards On The Radio’, rings out the
proceedings. Every time I play this wax I want to drink heavily while flying
down back country roads with no care in the world, flipping everybody off as I
set everything in my way on fire! Not a great combination, but I guess Thieving
Coyote brings out the rebel in me.
Slightly slower but with
a hell of a lot of oomph, Space Van’,
takes us on a messed up head trip, full of cowbells, riffs and groove. ‘Dead Man’s Gamble’ retains the same
groove and pace but there’s a strong Southern feel to the song and it’s as if they
are fronted by Otis B. Driftwood. We’re off on another trip and a half in ‘Dixie
Wizard’. No subtleties here as we rejoice in heavy ass music, Southern
darkness and booze. Sleazy and then some, that’s how closer ‘Lizards On The Radio’ is until around
4:15. That’s when everything turns into delta blues and acoustic at that.
Contrast in approach but damned good nonetheless.
I love surprises like
Thieving Coyote. In a time when there’s a multitude of bands within each genre
and subgenre, it is difficult to even begin searching for new talent. So when a
bunch of hoodlums from the darkest depths of South Carolina comes my way while wiping out
a lot of the competition, I couldn’t be happier.
-Swedebeast
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