Mos Generator - Nomads (album review)

Nomads starts off rocking balls and doesn't let up or loose steam.  From beginning to end, the album has a "heroes have returned" vibe that puts the confident veteran rockers in rarified territory among the years most accomplished albums to date.

Nomads oozes an easy confidence that comes across in the performance which gives the album the feel of a rock n roll clinic.

The band has decided to lead with their best, as "Cosmic Ark" and "Lonely One Kenobi" make for one of the year's strongest one-two combinations to open an album.  Both songs feature the best elements of the rest of the album, featuring heavy stoner riffs, a driving rhythm section and heart-and-soul vocals with catchy melodies.  It's no mystery as to why the band chose these two songs as singles (as well as 'Priest cover "Solar Angels"), they feature some of the most memorable moments on the album.

"Step Up" slows things down a bit and usually I'm with John Garcia on the slow songs front, but the tempo of this one does nothing to dull the edge the band has established and the album loses no momentum.  It's actually a re-recording of an earlier song that hasn't been available on a Mos Generator album before and it is definitely worthy of inclusion (and repeated listens) here.

"For Your Blood" is a chunky, aggressive rocker with a melodic chorus and is a potential sleeper hit on an album full of potential paranoid hits.

"This Is The Gift of Nature" is another re-recorded older song but neither of these tracks shows signs of age or wear and tear.  This is another groovy rocker with an improvised jam in the middle and a strong album closer that leaves you wanting more.

On the press of play the band strolls in and says "alright folks, this is how you rock," which Mos Generator proceed to do in a way so natural that one can only assume they were bred in a laboratory for that express purpose.  It's just a solid, solid album.

Don't mess with the greybeards.

Highlights include: "Cosmic Ark" and "Lonely One Kenobi"

Rating: 4.5/5





From: Port Orchard, Washington

Genre: Hard Rock, Stoner

Reminds me of: Black Sabbath, Lord Fowl, Nightstalker, Wino

Release Date: October 23, 2012

Suggested listening activity for fellow non-stoners: Throwing a television off the top of a parkade / shooting a television in the carport.

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