ALBUM REVIEW: ELECTRIC CITIZEN - HIGHER GROUND
Cincinnati heavy rockers Electric Citizen are here with their second offering “Higher Time”, a nice and tight follow up to their debut album “Sateen”. Higher Time delivers a steady, hard rock experience, brilliantly summoning sounds of the 70s with a no-nonsense attitude.
From Nate Wagner’s heavy hitting drum beats and the driving bass of Randy Proctor to the hot and huge sound of Ross Dolan’s guitar accompanied by wife Laura Dolan’s siren-esque vocals, this album is sure to please fans of Sabbath, Graveyard, Kylesa, Witchcraft, and many, many others.
The album opens with a huge, slow riff of doom and pounding drums before immediately crashing into a mid-70s underground rock show. A touch of melody and the smooth vocals round out the chorus before a biting breakdown riff and hot leads.
As the album continues, we’re met with powerful vocals and equally powerful riffs. Ross’s guitar tone is a very pure and natural one that doesn’t fuck around. The drums are intense when need be and held in the pocket at the right times while still standing out, and the bass is always right in your face, taking you on a journey through the dankest of shag carpets.
Around midway through the album (track 6) we’re at the title track which is a bit more straight-forward, with a deep almost liquid background and thick tone. Vocals are hypnotic and showcased very well here, as they are in the rest of the album.
The album continues with aggressive yet warm riffage without ever dropping the ball. It’s like cherry picking the best sounds of hard rock and melding them perfectly together. There isn’t much to be said other than this album jams and is a perfect addition anyone’s rock collection.
"Higher Time" is a solid piece of work front to back and very pleasing whether you’re simply rocking out in the car or blasting it at a party. There’s no down time to be found anywhere and the production and engineering is spot on.
The band has worked super hard and you can hear it in every little part. So grab a copy, roll one up, and let it hit you.
Be sure to keep an eye out for upcoming tour dates. For merch, news, and other info check out electriccitizenband.com and RidingEasy Records at ridingeasyrecs.com. Electric Citizen is a band to watch.
