Simon RushworthThese Wicked Rivers — Force Of Nature (Fat Earth Records)
When it comes to the New Wave Of Classic Rock, there’s something in the water.
It’s a genre that’s reassuringly refreshing, drenched in deep authenticity and awash with ambition.
And if one band, above all others, captures the very best of the UK’s most bullish live scene, then it’s the consistently wonderful These Wicked Rivers.
It’s a decade since the blues-infused, Southern rock tinged, riff machine first revealed their compelling manifesto for bold new music.
Ten years down the line and it’s job done.
Force Of Nature is, quite frankly, off the scale.
Of course it’s a record that’s rich in emotion, an album that recalls the heady days of classic rock’s golden era and a body of work that’s a benchmark for the NWOCR’s newcomers.
This is, after all, These Wicked Rivers.
But it’s much more than all of that. Honestly, this refulgent record’s like some kind of reckoning. A revelation.
But how? What’s behind the Rivers’ run from classy contenders to brazen scene leaders?
What’s finally unlocked the band’s dizzying potential? How have Derby’s finest suddenly gone and made good on that early prescience?
And why does this near-faultless set represent such a giant leap forward from the band’s more than decent debut Eden?
Just a few plays of Force Of Nature answers all of the above and more.
It’s like this record’s a lightbulb moment: confirmation of John Hartwell’s insane talent and proof positive that a fresh shot of self-confidence ain’t no bad thing.
With their new album, These Wicked Rivers have honed their sound, nailed their identity and knocked on the door of greatness.
Force Of Nature‘s a powerful statement
Force Of Nature isn’t over-exaggerating the jaw-dropping quality of 10 mind-blowing songs.
Unwrap this sumptuous sophomore set and you quickly realise this is a record that does what it says on the tin.
And then some.
There’s an early 90s Guns N Roses vibe underpinning the immersive, immense When The War Is Won.
It’s a track we’ll keep coming back to, such is its irresistible lure.
Then there’s the controlled fury of the Black Stone Cherry-meets-Clutch banger The Riverboat Man.
Keen to unearth evidence of These Wicked Rivers’ post-Eden progress? Start here.
Testify’s been on the Rushonrock radar for some time and this foreboding, almost cinematic, studio version adds delicious layers to a bona fide live favourite.
Juxtaposed with acoustic-led set closer Lonely Road, another sensational song that leans on a retro-fuelled, outlaw country template, Testify represents the very best of These Wicked Rivers.
After rigorously testing the post-Covid landscape, the shackles are well and truly off.
This is Hartwell and co. at their all-consuming best.
Expectations have been met, exceeded and blown out of the water.
When it comes to going with the incorrigible flow, These Wicked Rivers have cornered the market.
