{"id":8421,"date":"2022-01-17T19:45:14","date_gmt":"2022-01-17T18:45:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kessel-tamerus.nl\/Esthers_Blog\/?p=8421"},"modified":"2022-01-17T19:45:15","modified_gmt":"2022-01-17T18:45:15","slug":"vendetta-drive-vendetta-drive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kessel-tamerus.nl\/Esthers_Blog\/bluesrock\/vendetta-drive-vendetta-drive\/","title":{"rendered":"Vendetta Drive – Vendetta Drive"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The band members of the blues band Vendetta Drive previously played in other bands. Sometimes bands break up, and a new one is formed. Just like this band from Horst, Limburg (The Netherlands).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘Move’ is the opening track, but it starts the way a song could have ended, which is already the first surprise. After the instrumental intro, the vocals of Joep Hoebers (also guitarist) sound distorted, as you often hear in the blues. Ray Groothuis’ Hammond is pleasantly present. When the vocals are not distorted anymore, you can hear a pleasant light rough edge on Joep’s voice now and then. On the whole the sound is a bit too dull. The dingy sound of ‘Sugar Honey’ does suit the song.The long vocal runs sound wonderfully rough. The background vocals are subtle but beautifully added. During the instrumental piece, the guitar and organ come to the fore. Just before the end of this exhilarating song, Luc Verdellen adds a nice bass groove.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

‘My Blues Begins’ has a laidback start, in which drummer Rens Coenen keeps his sticks quiet for a while. Ray plays his Hammond suitably slow. Vocals and music are in balance. Because in the parts with more tempo, Joep sings more powerfully, while in the smaller parts he sings modestly and with emotion. In ‘Renegade’ you can hear that Joep can also handle the high notes well. If the vocals and music had been a bit slower and softer at some points, the contrasts would have been a bit bigger. Probably the emotion would have come over even better then. The ending is very good. The backing vocals in the catchy ‘Give It Time’ are sometimes a bit predictable.
But the number of repetitions is limited so it is not dominating. This song is a bit simpler than the rest. The emotion that was not quite there in ‘Renegade’, but is there in ‘Father Time’. Because in the parts with more tempo, Joep sings more powerfully, while in the smaller parts he sings modestly and with emotion. In ‘Renegade’ you can hear that Joep can also handle the high notes well. If the singing and music had been a bit slower and softer in places, the contrasts would have been a bit bigger. Probably the emotion would have come over even better then. The ending is very good. The backing vocals in the catchy ‘Give It Time’ are sometimes a bit predictable.
But the number of repetitions is limited so it is not overpowering. This song is a bit simpler than the rest. The emotion that was not quite there in ‘Renegade’, is there in ‘Father Time’. Tempo and volume are pushed up nicely, now and then there is a touch of backing vocals. The sound of the whole is a bit retro, one will appreciate it, another one might not like it. Whatever your preference, this is a cool song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The instrumental intro of ‘Hit ’n Run’ is beautifully subdued. This is a duet with Joan Jacobs, she has a very unique voice, it might be not everyone’s cup of tea. The power vocals of both are fine. The instrumental part is very good. The build-up to the end is a bit predictable. ‘Pearls Before Swine’ has more pace and volume. The moments of the backing vocals are not very surprising. Otherwise, there are some nice, unexpected things in this song. ‘Till We Meet Again’ is surprisingly small played and sung. This shows the versatility of the band. The songs differ enough from each other. There is also a good division between the (power) ballads and the more uptempo songs. Hopefully the Covid situation will improve so that ‘Vendetta Drive’ will start to book live performances, which will develop the songs further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(74\/100) (Captain Organ Records)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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