Single Review: Lucifer’s Rising

The Solomon Cole Band comprise Solomon (vocals, guitar), Fonnie Jo Davies (vocals), Lee Catlin (bass) and Loujean (LJ) Philander (drums), and one has to ask the question as to when did Waiheke Island become part of the Deep South and go back in time? Their latest release, Lucifer’s Rising, is taken from their second album, A Little South Of Heaven, and takes us almost 100 years into the past and geographically into the Southern states of America. It starts off as if it is a chain gang recording, the traditional pre-war blues style, with just vocals, simple guitars (including a steel) and a bass tied in with the bass drum. More vocals are layered on top, and the song gradually builds, with more than small amount of influence taken from the likes of the mighty Son House.

Away from the introduction, the band evoke the spirit of Dr John, the Night Tripper, bringing forth a Cajun-inspired voodoo blues which is so evocative the listener feels as if they are in the heart of Louisiana. This is music which is incredibly emotional, as the listener is taken on a journey which is totally genuine, and it is hard to believe this is coming from New Zealand. Fans of the likes of Leadbelly and Charley Patton are going to be amazed that music like this is being produced in 2020, mixing that traditional sound with swamp rock and roll. The chain gang style keeps coming back through the song as it develops into something which is dark and dirty, not something which should be out during the day as this is music for the night time, when anything is possible.

There is a swagger here, a knowledge that here is the raw genuine deal, with every note soaked in history and power, when music was created on emotion in the fields as opposed to in a studio with everything going through autotune. Each time I play this I “see” cotton fields and labourers, which morphs into something spilling out of a dirty dive in the French Quarter and the pictures in my head become intermingled and on top of each other. If the album is as powerful as the single, then it will be indispensable.