Have you been checking out your local bands lately? If not, here’s one you should be on the look out for. Sixgun Renegades is a four-piece hailing from Espoo-Helsinki region. The band has been founded in 2008 and has been doing a lot of gigs. I even attended one of them some years back and I always remembered their name. So when that email arrived in my inbox whether I wanted to review their album or not, I didn’t have to think twice about what to do. Their self-titled album is released through V.R. Label Finland/Playground Music Scandinavia and came out 26 January 2018.
“Renegade” the first track, opens up the album with a kick. With the dirty guitars, you can already kind of estimate how the album will sound like. “My Way or the Highway” continues in the same way and is absolutely very catchy. The next track on the album is “Unbreakable,” I especially like the intro of the songs, with drums being followed up by a groovy bass and then the rest kicks in. The bridge in “Unbreakable” provides a surprising, refreshing break from the rest of the song. The song is full with groovy rhythms and hooks. “Lost And Found” is a mid-tempo song, on the verge of being a power ballad. The song is driven by an excellent acoustic guitar, that doesn’t get lost in the mix. “Loaded Gun” starts off very great, it kind of almost has a Judas Priest-feel to it. The chorus is very catchy and it really feels like we’re taken back to the eighties. “Scream N Shout” and “Rock City Blues” both scream out blues. It shows another side of the band, other influences and it sure make interesting tracks, which I feel is a direction the band should consider for the future. I feel that Niko Räty‘s vocals tend out to shine more with this bluesy feel to it. More in general Niko Räty is a great singer, he has a solid and powerful voice, but I’m still missing that extra little punch that would make him truly outstanding. That’s something that I’m hearing especially in “Scream N Shout” and would like to very much hear this side of him in the future. “All For One… None For All” starts off pretty standard, but then develops into something a lot more interesting, when the 2:30 mark hits, the song becomes more and more interesting and more sleaze, with a great guitar solo. It could have easily been another song. The album ends with “Here To Stay”, a bit more generic than the rest of the songs, but definitely a good solid, more melodic track.
In general the quality of the production is really outstanding on this album. Every instrument stands out the way it should be. While the album is well-polished, it could use a bit more attention to the direction to where the band is heading.
I’m a fan of own genres and own marks on certain directions, when you have difficulties labeling a band, that’s when you know that they have done something right. And this is something that I’m still missing a little bit and would be my only critique in terms of what could be improved for future releases. The great guitars, groovy rhythms and solid vocals are proof of that Sixgun Renegades have a lot more to offer.
“Sixgun Renegades” is truly a great hard rock album, but I still feel like I haven’t found out what the true Sixgun Renegades sound is. But as I recall from seeing them play live, they had a great energy and I did feel after the show that I know what their band stands for. So I can only recommend to follow this band, they are a great live band and they have a promising future ahead. And if you like 80s rock, sleaze rock, hair metal, glam rock etc. you should definitely go take this album for a spin, because it really is worth the while.
Tracklist
1. Renegade
2. My Way Or The Highway
3. Unbreakable
4. Lost And Found
5. Loaded Gun
6. Scream N’ Shout
7. Rock City Blues
8. All For One… None for All
9. Here to Stay
Line-up
Teemu Räty – drums
Niko Räty – lead vocals, lead guitar
Samu Tuomi – guitar
Miko Mattila – bass
Label
V.R. Label
