THE IDLE HANDS – “A TOUCH OF THE BLUES”
(UK independent: Bone Idle Productions)

The Idle Hands have been around the UK scene for more than 10 years, wowing audiences with their infectious enthusiasm and dazzling showmanship. A fine heavy blues quartet built around the not inconsiderable six string prowess of guitarist Dave Robinson (think Beck, Hendrix, and more especially, classic Page), the rest of the line up comprises: vocalist Phil Allen, bassist Jamie Burns and drummer Simon Evans.

This offering was preceded by their excellent debut ‘The Devil Makes Work’ and the ‘live’ Blues & Booze.

A mixture of classic and slightly more modern (as in Gary Moore) sounding tracks, the previous ‘Devil Makes Work…’ release was a fine introduction which should have brought them much more recognition than it actually did, but undeterred at the lack of progress being made, the band displayed an enthusiasm and dedication to their art which was rather endearing and they set about the task of writing more songs, the best of which have been recorded and issued as their latest album ‘A Touch Of The Blues’. So whilst ‘The Devil Makes Work’ was a homily to the good old delta blues which originally inspired them, the overdriven guitar sound which dominates this latest release has much more in common with the kind of blues purveyed by Led Zeppelin in the late 60’s / early 70’s.

Obviously, anyone who thought life began with Malmsteen is probably gonna wonder what all the fuss is about, but for those of us who remember the pioneering days when the only thing that mattered was the song, ‘A Touch Of The Blues’ comes as a timely reminder of just how powerful heavy blues can be if it’s done properly.

As you’ve probably guessed, from my perspective, Robinson is the real star of this particular show, his fluid licks and expressive solos lighting up each and every song, but as a unit, the band have really excelled themselves too with a performance dripping with raw emotion. From the low slung drawl of opener ‘Something Goin’ On’, through emotionally charged numbers like ‘Making It Pay’, ‘Boss Man’, and ‘Red Eye Fight’ to the hedonism of title track ‘A Touch Of The Blues’, The Idle Hands deliver one of the best albums of it’s type I’ve heard in ages.

Why this lot ain’t signed is still a bit of mystery, but if they keep improving at this rate, album number three will be an absolute firecracker!

DAVE COCKETT

8.5/10