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Pet The Preacher

Meet The Creature EP

Written by: PP on 16/12/2011 01:54:36

Pet The Preacher is a brand new bluesy stoner rock unit from Copenhagen. I recently had the chance to check them out live - prior to listening to their three-track debut EP "Meet The Creature", mind you - and I left the show with mixed feelings about the band. Their vocalist sounded like he had great potential, but the songs were a drag hearing them live without prior knowledge to them. Not so on record, fortunately, where the solid Jacob Bredahl production amplifies the ability of vocalist Christian Madsen, while allowing for crisp instrumentals to go for a full-on groove effect throughout the eighteen minutes that the record lasts.

So we're dealing with bluesy stoner rock, with vibes taken from progressive rock and slide guitars, even integrating a slight southern tinge to the guitar grooves. It kind of sounds like a lost collaboration between Black Stone Cherry and Down, though that may be mostly because of how rock'n'roll the expression sounds like, which draws the parallel to the former, and due to how closely Madsen's voice recalls Phil Anselmo's seminal pipes. The Sword and Graveyard are other bands doing a similar thing, though it must be said that Pet The Preacher are far more stoner rock than classic rock for the most part.

The three songs on the EP are surprisingly mood-setting in nature. "I Won't Let You Go", for instance, ranges from groovy rock solos to slower and more bluesy ambience for an authentic sound. But most of all it is Christian Madsen who takes this unit to another level. He has the voice of a far more experienced man, clearly showcasing potential for a breakthrough even internationally if the band took a collective decision to 'dumb down' their sound a little bit from the progressive end of the rock spectrum. Here I'm thinking of how Wolfmother took the classic Zeppelin sound and made it available for a modern mainstream audience through some clever and catchy songwriting. Something along the lines of that but in stoner rock would certainly push Pet The Preacher into at least national recognition alongside the likes of Highway Child. "Into A Dark Light" is a good start, but it's six and a half minutes long. It is 2011 after all and every one of us has ADD when it comes to music. We'll see what happens on their upcoming full length album, and wait with full judgement until then.

Download: Into A Dark Night
For the fans of: Black Stone Cherry, The Sword, Down, Graveyard
Listen: Myspace

Release date 07.06.2011
Self-Released