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Stonewall - Stoner (1974)

Track listing:
  1. Right On 4:12
  2. Solitude 3:54
  3. Bloody Mary 4:12
  4. Outer Spaced 3:31
  5. Try & See It Through 6:00
  6. Atlantis 4:42
  7. I'd Rather Be Blind 5:25

Notes

Size: 63.7 MB
Bitrate: 256
mp3
Ripped By: ChrisGoesRock
Artwork Included

Background
This is a hard album to pin down. A crushing set of 70's hard rock, the album reportedly was recorded in early 1974 according to the album sleeve, but this sounds more like the product of 1971 or 72 for my ears. I might be wrong, but as to the scarcity of information on Stonewall we might never know, but according to some out there these guys were Italian! Recorded in nine days allegedly in New York City, this often excruciatingly heavy album has a touch of everything for fans of that era of hard rock, with a truckload of huge lumbering riffs, organ work and the harmonica of course. The cover artwork is interesting, some poor guy buried beneath a stack of Marshall amps!

Lots of blues incorporated into Stonewall's sound, take the track 'Try and See It Through', with the dominant use of harmonica and Hammond organ, which is a tasty little Purple based romp, with far more an acid based guitar tone, very fuzzy. Moving nicely is 'Atlantis', fast on occasion, with a simple yet effective rhythm section. The breakdown near the end is pure Zeppelin, reminiscent of 'Houses Of The Holy' era. The Zeppelin influence can be heard even more keenly on 'Suite A )I'd Rather Be Blind B) Roll Over Roller', where the drummer beats his kit down in true Bonham fashion and the riffs are knocked out in vintage Jimmy Page swagger. Elsewhere it's hard rock at its most basic, check out the monstrous riffing during 'Bloody Mary', and the lengthy jam. Stonewall aren't above slower progressive moments, 'Solitude' reminding me of early Wishbone Ash, circa 'Warrior'. When the track moves into overload halfway in, prepare to be hit by what can only be described as metal. Going for broke is 'Outer Space', where the band gets to take in every early 70's heavy blues ridden jam known to man. Convincing and another lost gem.

An extremely rare, privately pressed hard rock album with some psychedelic trappings. This type of album is far more likely to interest hard rock enthusiasts than connoisseurs of psychedelia and is a very marginal case for inclusion. Solitude and Atlantis are probably the most relevant tracks to this book.

01. Right On
02. Solitude
03. Bloody Mary
04. Outer Spaced
05. Try And See It Through
06. Atlantis
07. Suite