Mistrusted, From The Shadows - album review

They're Mistrusted by name and possibly by nature, it feels like they need to believe in their ability more to really throw the shackles off with their music.

Wolverhampton trio Mistrusted - a former incumbent of The Ticket's Unsigned page - have dropped their debut nine-track record for fans to hear.

Available exclusively on Bandcamp - but with physical copies available from the band themselves - it's a stomp through the realms of garage and desert rock with some grunge dolloped over the top for good measure.

For example, frontman Ken Sutera's guitars. These growl deliciously with more than enough southern American drawl and clanging sensibilities to give the impression of a long-time biker prowling the highways looking for the next bar. They are at their swaggering best on Miss Denial.

He is amply backed up by Ed Morton's bass. I Got This Enmity sees him thwonking along to give the track real gravity. Here we are drifting quite happily through Queens Of The Stone Age Territory with Sutera sounding very Josh Homme in his vocal delivery.

And Kal Bahia keeps them ticking along nicely with his drumkit. Vicious Apology is his time to shine with an audibly elevated role which he rises to gladly.

Influences are fairly easy to spot from time to time. That third track mentioned is very Greenday in the earlier part of their career with its almost playful tinge to the melodies.

Diatribe has more of a British rock'n'roll feel to it with its almost pained vocal style. The wall of sound built up in the chorus is pretty hefty.

And of course we've already mentioned QOTSA.

But at the same time it all feels a bit restrained. All three give off the impression they can run riot given the freedom to do so. Like we could have had some thunderous instrumentals to enjoy.

The record sounds good, we have to enforce that this isn't a failure at all. But it's like they left the safety switch on and made an album they knew wouldn't be edgy and, ultimately, divisive.

If Sutera, Morton and Bahia let loose next time out, go for broke, then Mistrusted could really have some fun and create something truly hard-hitting and explosive.

It's a solid start to life by the trio, and promises a lot for their future. Don't stop here guys.

Rating: 6/10

From The Shadows is currently available from Mistrusted's Bandcamp and Facebook pages.