Simon RushworthTyler Bryant & The Shakedown — Electrified (Rattle Shake Records)
Ready for the lowdown on the Shakedown?
We’ve been following the boy Bryant ever since stumbling across his high voltage set in a tent in Kent.
It was almost by chance that we caught a glimpse of the raw potential coursing through the firebrand Texan.
But that sweaty set in Maidstone was like some sort of rock and roll reckoning.
Snakefarm’s poster boy put out three smoking albums between 2017 and 2020 before parting company with the Spinefarm imprint during the pandemic.
Now fully independent, he’s approaching his craft with fresh intent.
And Electrified’s the closest Tyler’s come to recreating that riotous Ramblin’ Man Fair debut.
The energy’s off the scale: close your eyes and it’s easy to imagine Bryant and his buddies readily giving up blood, sweat and tears in pursuit of Shakedown perfection.
The vibe inside the band’s Nashville base must have been visceral.
Tyler teeters on the brink as he reels off addictive riff after addictive riff: this is some kind of manic, magnetic, sonic magic.
But it’s not all about Bryant.
The Shakedown’s a band. A band of brothers.
And the irrepressible Caleb Crosby drives the whole shebang from start to finish — don’t ignore the value of a drummer who senses when to go big and when to dial things down.
Graham Whitford — son of Aerosmith alumnus Brad — has always been the perfect foil for frontman Tyler and Electrified proves the point.
Twelve strings are always better than six and the Shakedown dozen get the job done.
Electrified provides that rock and roll spark
It’s been impossible to escape the earworm that is Electrified’s swaggering lead single Snake Oil.
A work of undeniable genius, it sets the bar impossibly high for the rest of material here.
But somehow Bryant, Crosby and Whitford unearth more diamond-plated, countryified blues rock as this barrelling album gathers pace.
Opener Between The Lines leans on a thumping rhythm before one of those swampy, scuzzed-up riffs — that Tyler’s made his own — takes over.
It’s a mouthwatering taste of what’s to come and oozes authentic Tennessee cool.
But it’s not all balls-to-the-wall bluster.
The stripped down Happy Gets Made, featuring Ruthie Foster, is a heartfelt insight into Bryant’s softer side.
And slow burner Crossfire, with its gang vocal chorus and brooding outlaw country snarl, is a manifesto for TB&TS’s unique brand.
It’s a family affair on One And Lonely as Bryant hooks up with wife Rebecca Lovell — an Americana-esque ballad that captures Crosby’s true class.
At just 164 seconds it packs a considerable emotional punch.
Six albums in and it’s time to talk about Tyler Bryant as a true giant of his genre.
With Electrified, the power’s in his hands.
