JP And The Razors – The Devil’s Make | Album Review

JP and the Razors – The Devil’s Make

Self-Produced

www.jpandtherazors.co.uk

10 Tracks; 30:30

Northwich in the UK is home to JP and the Razors. They have been bringing us their music for the past few years. This is their 4th release since 2016 (3 full length CDs and an EP). For this release 16 year old guitar player Jake Poole has been added to the former trio. He joins vocalist, guitarist and harmonica player Jonny Slidewell (JP), bass player Dave Roberts and S.A. Wright the drummer. Leigh Eaton added drums on 4 tracks. There is only one cover here, with Jonny Slidewell writing the rest with Jake Poole co-writing on 2 of them. The music is a mix of rock, blues & and a dash of R&B. I am sure they have fine tuned their skills in the pubs and clubs in their home country.

The opening cut is “There’s Something Going Wrong”. It has an old country blues feel with a rocking beat. On “The Waiting” the guitar work reminds me of Mark Knopfler’s guitar sound from Dire Straits. Leigh Eaton keeps a nice pace on his drum set. I like the rocking beat in “I’m Losing”, it is my favorite track of the release. The band cooks on this one. “So In Love, Part 2” is a follow up to a tune on a prior release. The guitar work is quite fine. The mix on “Love Disfigured Me” is quite good. There is nice separation of the two guitars in the speakers. The sound is crisp, but the vocals are a bit buried in the mix.

The guys rock out on the Chuck Berry penned “Nadine”. Jake Poole handles the guitar licks with grace and fire. On “The Devil’s Make” the sound has good quality. This is one they may have been able to rock out much more. The softer feel continues on “It’s Getting Late”. It has a bit of jazzy feel to it and does pick up the pace a bit in the middle of the song. “The Pedler” is a southern rock tune, with a fast pace jam to it. The release’s closing track is “You’re On My Mind”. Jake Poole’s lead guitar work has some good Clapton feel to it. It is the best guitar work on the CD and the best track. I wish it was a longer track that let him and the band really stretch out.

There is some blues here, and a very good sound mix of the music, though the vocals are a bit buried at times. There is some variety in sound, but at times the more laid back sound got a bit repetitious. I had hoped they would really attack the music on more of the tunes. It is not a volume issue, I’d just like to feel more live feel in the music.

Jake Poole may be a young guitar player to keep an eye on for the future. I like that there is plenty of original material. A feature on UK’s RnR Magazine’s sampler Un-Herd Vol. 74 will increase exposure. The band is growing and writing their own material. To the band, keep working on it. Bring on the drive felt from the tunes on your ReverbNation page and “The Waiting”. It will help you make your way forward. Keep the blues music alive around the world!

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