The South Australian Strikers of William Street are back with their second full length album. The one thing you can always expect from a William Street Strikers album is there will be a lot of musical variety with no two songs sounding the same. The band explore elements of country, garage, grunge, heavy rock, and pop. All of this is interweaven with with a great country / rural atmosphere that makes the album feel like a long journey through the outback with different twists along the way!
‘Nothing’s going on’ has a vintage soft Australian rock sound to it, sounding somewhere between Australian Crawl and Cold Chisel. There is a great atmosphere, with the song slowly drifting by making you feel like you are strolling through a remote country town. ‘Maybe’ sees the energy levels take a big leap with a great pub rock vibe. There is a very lively vibe taking the feeling of a cramped but energetic mosh pit. The gritty lyrics further add to the raw atmosphere. ‘Wreck my soul’ brings in the funky Red Hot Chilli Pepper-esq backbone, combined with a great rocking sing-along chorus.
‘Stalker’ has a catchy ska backdrop but delivered with a certain Australian outback twist to it. This gives the song a fresh feel with the best bits of ska and Australian rock creating a lively and atmospheric tune.
‘Ruby Blue’ is a simple but effective country / folk tune. A sombre tune of heart break, it is delivered with a sense of depression yet acceptance.
The music takes a sudden and sharp turn to the heavy rocking sounds of ‘Seven more’. Fuelled with loud distorting guitars the track brings out a nostalgic grunge soundscape. ‘Get on board’ is a dark and edgy indie-pop tune. There is a curious contrast of poppy tunes and a more menacing industrial backdrop, the two working well and complementing each other. The album closes with the fast and furious punk rock anthem ‘No surrender’. Topped off with a Midnight Oil-esq drum solo the track ensures the album ends on a massive energetic high!
The William Street Strikers have continued their rocking charge. They cover just about every sub-genre of rock you can think of on this album while at the same time bring them all together with their own dusty atmospheric stamp!
Check out the William Street Strikers’ website to find out more!