The Moose - Earth Mover

Posted on the 10 October 2019 by Ripplemusic

Hailing from Courtland, AL, The Moose are a force to be reckoned with...which is stating the obvious really. Not beating around the bush, they don't spare any punches with their diesel 'n' dust infused rock 'n' roll. Adding a little touch of southern rock, some jammin’ and punk attitude, the band has created a pretty damned good take on heavy music. This is CD is a 50/50 release and with that I mean the first 4 songs are studio recordings while the other 4 were captured live.
The studio section starts off with ‘Bruja’, a heavy yet jammy song with a definitive southern touch. Next up is ‘Spacetrippin’ and god damned, this is excellent spacerock without super-fuzzed out guitars and trippy soundscapes. It is full throttle from the word go until the latter parts when it slows down only for the band to kick in and jam the hell out of the place. ‘Thieves’ follows and is slower and more punishing, kind of like High On Fire but not as fast and with Ronnie Van Zant on vocals. ‘Kung Fu Deathgrip’ goes full steam ahead at a neck breaking pace until The Moose down shifts a touch while retaining their crushing approach.
First out in the live section is ‘Manifesto’ which is a groovy, diesel-smelling jam mayhem. ‘Death’ boogies down, rocking the hell out from start to finish. ‘Step Off’ is a total early 70’s worship, soaked in sharp riffs, groove and debauchery. The song which started this CD gets to end it with a more vicious and raucous take on ‘Bruja’.
I like the split this excellent CD offers, because you can hear how the band translate their studio work to a live setting. Especially since this particular live section is candid and uncensored with whatever that entails. Therefore, mistakes as well as some serious drunken banter walk side by side without being altered, and I love that. The drunken part also translates into an unruly and untidy – in parts – performance but that’s great since it brings out the feel-good vibe and electricity The Moose exudes…and that makes for a great recording!
-Swedebeast