Brandy Row “Hold No Shame”

The singer songwriter market is a pretty full one and has a lot of pretty dull artists in it. Thankfully, Brandy Row is not just a singer songwriter, he is a troubadour and described as having the urgency of rock n roll and the poetic charm of folk. The fact that he has played with people who know all about rock n roll e.g. Slim Jim Phantom and Adam Ant, also tells you a lot about what to expect with this release.

First song “Consolidated”, opens up slowly before some huge drums kick in. It then unravels like some sort of fat snake. It’s mean and moody, with drums that show he has picked up a few tips from Adam And The Ants. Whilst the title track, “Hold No Shame”, is like a truly wasted Bob Dylan.

That strung out feel is kept going with the, so laid back it’s horizontal, sound of “Martial Law”. It’s the sort of slow beat, sleazy blues that we used to hear from Johnny Thunders. The beat picks up on final track “Walking On A Razor’s Edge”, which has an almost ragtime or gypsy feel to it.

There is no doubt that this is a late night E.P. It’s a back from the bar, one last drink (or bottle of wine!) soundtrack. It doesn’t have a ‘rock’ sound but it’s definitely still rock n roll. It has the sound of a songwriter who knows about living a life in the gutter, and will have many a tale of debauchery and high times to enchant you with.