Most Helpful Customer Reviews
|
|
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not bad, not bad..., March 31, 2000
I'm assuming that anyone who reads this review must already be a Gone Jackal fan or at least heard their previous album, "Bone to Pick." To put it simply, this album, in my opinion, is just as good as the original. The band seems to have backed off a little bit - none of their music in this album is as loud or as hard as some of the songs on "Bone to Pick," except for "Crank it Up!""Bone to Pick" had a few really amazing songs, and the rest are average. "Blue Pyramid" has many many good songs, but only one or two that really stand out. Anyways, if you're Jackal fan, pick this album up. It's worth it.
|
|
|
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gone Jackals "Blue Pyramid" Review - The Daily Vault, January 6, 2005
BLUE PYRAMIDThe Gone JackalsBlue/Black RecordsReview by: Bob PierceAs much as I've tried to make "The Daily Vault" a friend to the independent artist, sometimes I don't quite look forward to checking out some of the releases I get in the mail. Some of them just seem to scream "bar band that wants to make good", and I try to put listening to those discs off as long as possible. (I know it's a terrible thing to admit, but when you've got the backlog that I've got in my in basket, some corners need to be cut.)Then, there is Keith Karloff and The Gone Jackals. I have to admit I wasn't looking forward to listening to Blue Pyramid, but found myself at my "real" job at one o'clock in the morning listening to it... and wondering why the hell I hadn't popped this disc on earlier. Simply put, The Gone Jackals are no half-assed bar band, nor are they a throwback to the glory days of hard rock and heavy metal. Instead, they are a solid rock band that better be given a break pretty quickly. Vocalist/guitarist Karloff and his backing band - guitarist/vocalist Judd Austin, bassist R.D. Maynard and drummer/vocalist Trey Sabatelli - grind through twelve solid songs that help reaffirm even the biggest skeptic's faith in up-and-coming rock and roll. Repeated listens to Blue Pyramid only confirm stronger what you begin to suspect almost from the moment you push "play" for the first time: this disc's a winner.From the opening notes of "Covering Hallowed Ground," The Gone Jackals create their own style of rock that lightly borrows from some of their forefathers without blatantly stealing riffs or attitudes. The resulting sound and songwriting is all their own, as a result. Tracks like "13X," "Evil Twin Sisters," "No Sign Of Rain" and "Bustin' A Move" are all tracks which will have you coming back for more almost the moment the disc ends.You might be skeptical about the abilities of a rock band who features song titles like "Barrel Of Crabs" and "That Blows My Mind," but these songs are just as strong as the others mentioned. All the songs just seem to come together very well, and are well-performed. This is half the battle; the other half is keeping the listener interested throughout the disc. And while my attention occasionally drifted, for the most part, I was locked into what I was listening to.Only at the end of the disc, on the title track, does the energy level seem to dip a bit - but this is a small point of contention out of this whole disc. Karloff, a veteran of the music scene, knows how to create a good song and execute it, though credit must be shared with his bandmates as well. Their voices are heard just as loudly through their instruments as Karloff's singing.Blue Pyramid is not an album you would normally hear of or see on the store shelves for an impulse buy. But if Karloff and crew get the right breaks (and I hope they come soon for this band), that all might change. Don't be surprised if by this time next year The Gone Jackals are, at the very least, holding a solid support act status on a major tour. God knows they're good enough, and Blue Pyramid proves that... and more.
|
|
|
5.0 out of 5 stars
Blue Pyramid Review - Slam Magazine, Italy 12/04 - Reprint, December 27, 2004
"Blue Pyramid" is the third album of the San Francisco hard rock'n'roll band "The Gone Jackals".
The album follows the "biker hard rock'n'roll" style of the previous and successful cd "Bone To Pick" (released in 1995, made famous by Lucas Art for the great soundtrack of one of the most sold videogames ever, "Full Throttle"). Energic, sometimes psychedelic..."Blue Pyramid" is a very good cd, very unique.
The cd opens with "Covering Hallowed Ground", that passes from the mystic atmosphere of the intro to a powerful hard rock riff. It's one of my favourite songs of the album, really powerful, such as "Crank It Up!".
"Business As Usual" is one of the singles of the cd and it brings us to the previous album sound. A "classic" of The Gone Jackals.
"Alone At Last" is sometimes heavy, sometimes rock'n'roll, and the track n.5, "No Sign Of Rain", is the other single of the album that has arrived 20 in Gavin's "top 40", ahead of famous artists in the music business such as Samantha Fox and Natalie Imbruglia...cool!
After, we find "Bustin' A Move", a hard rock'n'roll song faithful to the G.J. style.
"13x" starts with a beautiful arpeggio, but it soon becomes a loud song. Certaintly one of the most powerful songs that the band has ever written.
In the following track, "Evil Twin Sisters" (very blues), Keith Karloff let Judd Austin (the other guitar player) sing. He has a cool and beautiful bluesy voice.
A beautiful bass intro introduces to us "That Blows My Mind". Even this, a very good song.
"Barrel Of Crabs" and "Keep It Under Your Hat" go with rhythm of blues, and the final track (that gives the name the whole album), "Blue Pyramid", starts psichedelic and then continues with a powerful hard blues, that keeps the atmosphere (expecially the first guitar solo).
"Blue Pyramid" is an original cd, played very well.
I hope that the band will return with a new cd. The G.J. fan are still waiting (5 years) a new work, even if the leader of the band, Keith Karloff, seems more dedicated to his new rock'n'blues band, "The Bonedrivers".
Carlo "Hawk" Mazzoli
|
|
|
|
Interact With Your Music: Discover, listen to, and buy new music, all from the pages of SPIN's digital edition, free to Amazon customers.
by The Gone Jackals 
