Straight Six: Full Circle Review: Rockin’ the Ages

The rise of electronic music, hip hop, and country mixed with just about anything has all but drowned out the loud sounds of the 2000s and the years before. During these times the radio always had a presence for the sounds of loud guitars and crashing drums. Vocals infused with anger, pain, joy, and mischief riddled over the heavy instrumentals stopping only for guitar solos fans lovingly describe as “face-melting.” Straight Six denies this, as the project formed of seasoned rock veterans answer to the question “Is rock still alive”? Is a resounding “YES!”

This is mirrored in their debut album, Full Circle. The album takes you on a journey through many different sounds of rock and roll, attempting to serve as a veritable time machine of sorts to showcase the attitude and style of the genre. In this respect, Full Circle succeeds in spades. Tracks such as Aimed at Me and 21 Guns evoke the true feel and attitude of the genre, with intimidating lyrics over heavy instrumentals with a smooth groove that is often lost on less experienced musicians. Those who are fans of classic rock, especially the Mob Rules-era Black Sabbath style sounds will love what Straight Six has come up with to whet your appetite for this ambitious project.

However, tracks such as those listed above, even others such as Black and Blue capture the heavy and hard soul of hard rock and roll, without a doubt, but it’s polarizing tracks such as Cry all Night or uninspired ones such as Jonser’s Lane that compromise the integrity of the album as a whole. Alongside these fleshed-out and fun tracks that you can’t help but nod your head to, you have those who seem either out of place or not fully realized which makes for unmemorable pauses in between an otherwise full-throttle experience.

Straight Six is without a doubt a talented group of musicians and a fun project. The tracks that pack a punch hit hard, the ones that shred will make your head bang and the masterful bass grooves littered throughout the album speak volumes higher than eleven about the masterful composition of the songs as a whole. While not perfect, Full Circle is an album for those who are looking for the gritty, no-holds-barred, old-school rock and roll feel. It may not be the greatest thing to request at the club, but it will definitely hype your favorite local dive bar in a heartbeat with a pulse heavy enough to wake the dead.