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REX BROWN
Smoke On This...
eOne Music

He carried the bass in PANTERA and DOWN for a good two decades into his music career and continued to kill it during his time in KILL DEVIL HILL. Then he wrote an entertaining and honest autobiography titled 101 Truth, 101 Proof: The Inside Story Of Pantera about that whole experience. Now, having finally found his inner voice after a stellar 35-year career in the hazy echelons of the music biz, Rex Brown is developing a habit of chanting in public with his first solo album Smoke On This....

With the combined efforts of Nashville-based guitarist Lance Harvill, drummer Christopher Williams (ACCEPT, BLACKFOOT and, yes, Lee Greenwood), keyboardist Peter Keys (LYNYRD SKYNYRD, George Clinton) and producer Caleb Sherman (LITTLE BIG TOWN, PORTER BLOCK), Smoke On This... is the humble sounds of Rex Brown compiling the soundtrack of his youth. “Lone Rider”, “Crossing Lines” and “Train Song” in particular are the main tracks with a quick straightforward groove drawing inspiration from the sounds of 70’s Southern boogie rockers BLACKFOOT, In Through The Out Door-era ZEPPELIN and British blues riffers FOGHAT respectively. “Fault Line” has a neat BEATLES vibe to it though you can hear slight traces of PINK FLOYD in the song as well, which was the first song that Rex had officially sung on which gave him the motivation to push forward with the solo project afterwards. That same vibe continues on “Get Yourself Alive” but with a stronger BEATLES influence particularly with the inclusion of the Indian tandoori on the song which hearkens back to their Maharashtra era. Closing number “One Of These Days” combines the dark brooding vocal style of Tom Waits with the catchy melodic groove of Tom Petty, making for a nicely balanced song stemming from two unlikely pairings culminating into a harmonic finale.

From the four-stringed rhythm cowboy from hell who admits to listening to everything from Sinatra to SLAYER, there’s quite a lot to admire on his first solo effort Smoke On This... no matter what your musical preferences are once the haze clears way and the path to clarity is lit up. Take it from a lone rider who’s known this route all of his life.

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4.5 Out Of 5.0

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