Album Review : Stone Whiskey – ‘Rebels of the Sun’

Review by Andy Houghton for MPM

Rebellious rockers Stone Whiskey hail from Raleigh, North Carolina, and comprise Alan Rueda (vocals), Bill Spears and Chris Clark (guitars), Jim Hunter (bass) and Mik Ropelewski (drums). ‘Rebels of the Sun’ is their debut album and was recorded at Vintage Noise Studio, also in Raleigh.

The album contains nine tracks of hard-hitting rock and roll with undertones of such luminaries as Guns N’ Roses and The Cult. We dive straight into the action with ‘Into the Moonlight’, a scorcher of an opener and a perfect introduction to this band’s classic hard rock sound. ‘Empty Eyes’ takes things up another notch, with Rueda’s vocals providing a great match for the fuzzy instrumentals.

Title track ‘Rebels of the Sun’ is an album highlight, with a thrilling mid-track shift in tempo accompanied by an all-too-brief guitar solo. The other standout, ‘Feels Like Yesterday’, shows that they can do ballads too – and really great ones. Being the longest and most nuanced track on the album, it gives the band room to explore their range and show that they’re capable of more than just hard rock.

Every track has something to commend it, however, and nothing disappoints. From start to finish ‘Rebels of the Sun’ is an absolute corker of an album, and one that will draw you back for repeated listenings. Highly recommended.

Tracklisting:

1. Into the Moonlight
2. Empty Eyes
3. Rebels of the Sun
4. Out on the City
5. Troublemaker
6. Mirror
7. Feels Like Yesterday
8. Talkin’ Dirty
9. Livin’ Wild

‘Rebels of the Sun’ was released on May 7^th, 2021.

Website: https://stonewhiskeyband.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stonewhiskey

Twitter: https://twitter.com/stone_whiskey

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stonewhiskeyband/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgYJS4qfB_aEYiqFEhCKF5Q