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Album Review : Bullets and Octane Riot Riot Rock N Roll

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California based hard rockers Bullets and Octane are back with their latest album, ‘Riot Riot Rock N Roll’ and if you want something to annoy the neighbours with, this is the album you’ve been waiting for. This is a band that has honed and evolved its kick ass sound over the past 22 years despite multiple line up changes and the album is loud, hard and fast and lives up to its title.

Opening at a frenetic pace with the title track, the band rip into it like their lives depend on it with Gene Louis screaming in your face and setting the scene for the rest of the album, before we are into the first single off the album, ‘Ain’t Gonna Be Your Dog’, which was  co-written with ex Buckcherry guitarist Keith Nelson.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mw3zbO9YmDU&w=560&h=315]

The pace drops a little for this as the track drives along, but you sense the guys are dying to break loose again and let us have both barrels. They are soon able to as ‘The Devil’ opens with some nice guitar work from Felipe Rodrigo before Louis’ vocals roar and the 2 spar throughout the track, ably accompanied by the banging rhythm section of Kibbee & Udell.

‘Give Me A Reason’ has a more commercial slant to it, with Louis’ hard edge vocals sounding a little like Dave Grohl, backed expertly by the band and some chanting backing vocals. Rodrigo has another nice riff or two and the whole track wouldn’t be out of place on a Foo Fighters album. ‘As The Bombs Fall’ takes us to the halfway stage with it’s dirty grind coupled with some of the most laid back vocals on the album mixed once again with some nice guitar work before leading us into ‘Addicted To Outrage’ which will get your head nodding and your feet tapping.

I found myself sucked in by this point and really enjoying the album, but reviewing this in lockdown due to the Corona Virus makes it difficult as what I want to get this playing in the car, windows down and screaming off down the road.

‘Heaven Can Wait’ picks up the pace once again and as Louis belts out “…..and I’ll never see the sunlight again”,  I’m beginning to know how he feels. The whole band really come together here as vocals, lead, bass and drums thump out the track to make it my favourite on the album.

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A deceptively quiet and mundane intro to ‘Chaos’ leaves you wondering where its going, but it’s soon kicked into touch in favour of more of Rodrigo’s guitar riffs and Louis’ raucous vocals which both give the feeling of controlled chaos as it leads us into the penultimate track ‘Rooftop Tears’ which again starts off fairly calm before the beat picks up and we are into another foot stomping treat. ‘Lost Crazy Psycho’ finishes the album as it started –  at a frenetic pace with the band coming together to assault your ears and leave you in no doubt that this is exactly what is says – a riot of rock n roll.

Each track on this album is like drinking a shot – short & potent – and if taken one after another, possess the power to knock you of your feet. Play it loud so you can appreciate it for the slab of hard rock that it is and who knows the neighbours might even thank you for it.

Riot Riot Rock N Roll” is released worldwide on April 24th via Bad MoFo Records/Cargo Records UK.

  BULLETS AND OCTANE is:

Gene Louis – Vocals

Felipe Rodrigo – Guitar, Backing Vocals

Zachary Kibbee – Bass, Backing Vocals

Jonny Udell – Drums

Reviewed by : Howard Whitelaw (April 2020) for MPM

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