The Lucky Ones

Chronique

Sounding like an especially sleazy biker gang who have come to lay waste to your town because, hey, what else is there to do on a Tuesday, Satan's Satyrs are a greasy menace and proud of it on their fourth full-length album, 2018's The Lucky Ones. This time out, the music feels a bit fuller and flies its freak flag a bit higher, thanks in part to the presence of additional guitarist Nate Towle, and there's just a hint of boogie in the sinister swagger of tunes like "She Beast" and "You and Your Boots." But if Satan's Satyrs are a few shades less doomy than they were in their earlier work, their commitment to Heavy is complete even when there's a bit less Metal in the formula. Singer, bassist, and idea guy Clayton Burgess sounds like Ozzy's distant cousin who somehow settled in the American South, but he has a garage-centric sneer in his voice that sets him apart from his peers. The attack of drummer Stephen Fairfield and guitarists Jarrett Nettnin and Towle is just loose enough to groove while sounding very effective; there's a lot of muscle and very little fat on the frame of these songs. The musical and lyrical influences on display generally sound like they stopped evolving in the mid-'80s, and The Lucky Ones is the product of a band that seems to be perfectly happy living in the past. This isn't a work of nostalgia per se, but music created by guys who, like Saint Vitus, decided they were born too late and have found their own future by digging deep into heavy rock's back pages, and that's a trick they pull off with aplomb. And not many bands would have the vision to ask "Who's to say what really is obscene?" as these guys do on the slightly glammy "Trampled by Angels," let alone get a laugh from the query. Get some beer, hop on your chopper, crank up The Lucky Ones, and Satan's Satyrs will help you have a very memorable evening you'll be living down for months to come.

© Mark Deming /TiVo