Power rock duos are nothing really new, but when they gel, they can come up with some truly exciting music. You don’t need to go much further than The White Stripes or Black Keys as an example.
Trying to work in that, what can now become a tradition is the Hollywood, California, Via Ontario, Canada duo Thorslund, comprised of Jeff Thorslund (vocals, guitar, bass guitar) and his brother Tom Thorslund (drums, backing vocals).
While White Stripes and Black Keys like their power channeled through very recognizable blues and R&B/soul grooves, the two brothers like the rock modifications brought by the slew of ’70s hard rock bands like Free, Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, Thin Lizzy, and quite a few others.
On their latest single, “Firecracker Man” Thorslund brothers pick up that line that added some dancey grooves to the proceedings and then filtered it through the ’90s grunge purveyors like Soundgarden.
It is a tight, riff-filled rocker with a full sound, that goes beyond what just two musicians are supposed to come up with, but, then, Thorslund is getting acclaim for their live shows which they seem to have successfully transferred here.
The question here is not whether you’ve heard something like this before, you most probably have, but whether it is any good and the answer to that question is a resounding yes.