Back in 2020 Swedish rockers Future Elephants? released their second album Human Passin’ Thru, an album that mixed Classic Rock, British Pub Rock and Hard Rock with progressive elements and a mighty groove – very live-friendly. Another thing I dug with that album was that the production felt earthy, organic and lively and it inserted the feeling of four guys in the studio, pushing rec/play and just played together – old school yet not dated. Quite refreshing when you think about how compressed and thick many records sounds today. The fact that I still haven’t checked out their self-titled debut album from 2016 yet is a bit embarrassing. I need to correct that. However, now three years later the band is back with a new record which of course brings on some expectations. For a band-introduction, go back to the review of their last album.
Opener and first single “Shake The Snake” is a real banger. It’s a mid-paced yet upbeat groove-fest, edgy, raw and down-to-earth and very live-friendly. It’s a Classic Rock stomper, very 70’s sounding with a crunchy Hammond that gives the tune a slight Deep Purple touch. It’s rhythmic and direct with strong melodies and an intense chorus hook that sticks like super-glue. This is superb. The following “Ground Floor Man” is a more upbeat yet held-back number with an almost annoyingly contagious groove albeit with a caliginous topic. It holds a spacey atmosphere with late 60’s vibes but also a direct flow and a 70’s Classic Rock crunch. Again, the song is perfect for the stage and brings along a whole bunch of hooks. Very good.
The slightly prog-laden “Walking With A Dead Man” is split up in two parts which makes it take different turns throughout the song. It starts out with something that sounds like a mixture of classical music and Celtic folk but soon turns into a heavy and bluesy Hard Rock groover carried by a solid rhythm and raw-edged guitars with a darker, almost sinister atmosphere. It’s riffy, bouncy and earthy and it goes from down-beat to upbeat while never losing its groove. An infectious vocal melody and an in-your-face refrain is the icing on the cake here. The song might be a grower for some but it stuck right off the bat for me. Great stuff.
“Rain” opens with a chunky bass-line yet slow in tempo. It’s quite a laid-back tune with a bit of a dreamy flow and a ghostly atmosphere. Even though the tune comes with a softer outlook and it brings on a feel-good and even at times cosy vibes there’s something ominous and nightmare-ish over the song. This one took a few spins to stick as it’s a bit hard to get into and not all that direct but it’s worth the efforts because it turns out it’s a damn god tune. Also on a slower note, the bluesy “The Judge” brings on some dynamic contrasts when the laid-back structure also rubs shoulders with a stellar beat and a chunky groove and a glance at Alice Cooper’s early 70’s. Horns, a dreamy soundscape and direct melodies plays their parts in making this tune yet another winner here. Brilliant.
“The Planet’s Crusaders” is without a doubt the album’s rockiest and most uptempo number. It’s pretty much a basic rocker, direct and in-your-face with a kick-ass outlook – a song I’d chose as the opener for live shows. It’s a robust, firey and muscular Classic Rock stomper that strikes hard and takes no prisoners. It felt kind of standard at first but has grown into a real killer. Great stuff. “Peter’s Demons” is a rowdy Classic Rock belter, quite heavy and dark and again, early 70’s Alice Coper comes to mind in some of the more ominous sounding arrangements but there’s also a nod to MK II Deep Purple in there. It holds a distinct groove even in the chorus where the pace slows down some. Said chorus is terrific with an instant hook. Very good.
The album closes with an ode to your beverage of choice – the title “Drink” kind of says it all. It’s a raunchy 70’s sounding rocker that despite a darker ambience still feels like a fun-loving drinking song that will work splendidly as a soundtrack to the pre-party. Or the after party for that matter. It holds a chunky and beefy groove, every melody sticks like glue right from go and the chorus is catchy as hell albeit not radio-poppy at all. We just can’t have enough drinking songs so what’s not to love about it? Good one.
As a whole, it feels pretty much like a sibling to the last record style-wise. It might be slightly heavier with a bigger grit and some rougher edges but what stands out most is that it sounds better – it sounds really damn good. It still has the four guys in the studio going for it thing, the organic and rootsy vibes, it breathes and sounds lively but at the same time it sounds more professional – and by that I don’t mean that the last album didn’t but this one comes with a bigger and more international structure sound-wise. It might lack a couple of more uptempo numbers or so but that’s trivial because we’re being treated with eight songs where none is worse than good, quality over quantity and at the end of the day that’s what really matters. Well done indeed.
8/10
More Future Elephants? reviews:
Tracklist:
1. Shake The Snake
2. Ground Floor Man
3. Walking With A Dead Man
A) Elegy For A Dying Gender
B) The Walk
4. Rain
5. The Judge
6. The Planet’s Crusaders
7. Peter’s Demons
8. Drink
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