Upon first listen, BRMC’s Take Them On, On Your Own is remarkably familiar.
The trio’s taste for bluesy guitar riffs and gravelly vocals is as evident on this record as it was on their first, and the apparent lack of a ‘Spread Your Love’-esque throat grabber – of which we know they’re wholly capable – makes initial conclusions somewhat disappointing.
But as is the case with so many of what turn out to be my favourite albums, this one is a grower. Indeed, once you've become somewhat acquainted with the record, it swiftly proceeds to convince you that it is deserving of more than casual dismissal.
Album opener ‘Stop’ is among the highlights, care of its dirty blues-rock jam, as is ‘Six Barrel Shotgun’ which sees the band in full-on rock assault mode. ‘Shade Of Blue’ diverts the ear to downtempo laments, repeating the mantra “I don’t care if you can take it/I can’t take it any more I’ll die”, and ‘And I’m Aching’ – a moment of intimate acousticism – sees them hold up to the challenge of keeping things quiet, thus giving further props to the theory that BRMC are more than a one, or even two-hit wonder.
Not as mindblowing as we’d hoped it would be, but a damn fine record all the same.