Article By: Pat ‘Riot’ Whitaker ‡ Edited By: Leanne Ridgeway
Can two men a rock band make? If you have asked yourself this question at some time, then allow me to point you toward Lisbon, Portugal‘s Her Name Was Fire. See, this band is composed of two brilliant musicians, João Campos on guitar and vocals, and Tiago Lopes on drums. They recently released their debut full-length effort ‘Road Antics‘.
Let me tell you, the road is not the only place there are antics going on, as this ten-song record is full of amazing musical antics. With a powerful, appealing sound that I’d describe somewhat similar to a mix of Queens Of The Stone Age or Kyuss with the grittier elements of Nineties’ grunge. This music is designed to impress, and it does exactly that with its slower vibes, soulful bluesiness, and gravity-defying grooves.
Although a smooth operator most times, the songs do indeed contain an ever-present, underlying wallop in their harder edginess. The guitars generate their propulsion, while the drums gallop along and keep things well-grounded. From the quickened thump of “Little Pain” to the super bad-ass “Take My Soul“, things shine right from the start there.
The duo really riles up the energy on cuts like “Wrong“, “Nightcrawler” (audio-only video clip below), and incredible album-closing “So Long Starman“. Yet for every note of fuzzened desert rock, there’s also the lower-keyed mellow rock of songs such as “Gone In A Haze” or “Summer Summer“.
Simply put, this is a fantastic album of multifaceted music, one that takes you for a ride, one you will immediately want to repeat once it has run its course the first time.
In closing, can two men a rock band make? Why hell yes… that and so much more. I suggest you undertake the journey from Her Name Was Fire‘s ‘Road Antics‘ now in the Bandcamp stream below or grab a copy at their Bandcamp page.
