Album Review

Jamestown Pagans – Inheritance EP

• 2nd Aug 2012

One of the many great things about writing for Glasswerk is that people send me music to review. Now, not only is this free music but it also means that I get to hear from bands I might otherwise have missed.

One such band is Jamestown Pagans. A link to their new EP arrived in my e-mail all the way from Los Angeles, California. And I found that I love the modern take on progressive rock that this new three piece band has. The four tracks on this release are powerful and atmospheric with great guitar work, solid drumming and some quite sumptuous organ backing the impassioned vocals.

Jamestown Pagans don’t do short songs it seems. The EP runs to 28 minutes of music, giving them plenty of scope to create – and they make the most of every second of it. The opening For Release starts slowly with Jacob Simpson’s guitar intro before the band bursts into life. Christopher Hurt’s organ takes over, a lush layered sound that swirls and builds. Taylor Mills sets the pace with some powerful drumming and then Hurt’s heartfelt vocals come in, telling of a fight for freedom. Add in some lovely guitar work and you have a damned fine rock track.

Mirrors, just over four minutes long, is the shortest track here. It has a faster pace and some Southern rock sounding guitar licks but the vocals are still passionate and strong. And that lovely organ sound is in there too. The six minutes plus of Waiting On The Wind rushes by as the three piece create a sound that would suggest a much larger band. Piano and guitar set the melody while the drums crash and the vocals soar.

The EP is closed by the epic nine minutes of Crumbling, a track that takes me back to the days when tracks of that length were common. But it does not sound at all dated; rather the trio have a sound that uses excellent instrumentation to create something with tremendous vitality. That wonderful organ sound runs right through the song and Simpson’s guitar work is thrilling.

Jamestown Pagans have created a fine EP with four tracks that all display excellent musicianship and a lovely clean sound. Progressive rock is something of a forgotten genre these days and it is great to see new exponents come forward with such an excellent debut.

The Inheritance EP is available for download at [link] If three minute pop songs are your bag then this probably isn’t for you. But if you like well crafted and atmospheric rock music then this could just be the best four dollars you will ever spend.