Review by Urban “Wally” Wallstrom,
2 November 2010 www.RockUnited.com
Question: What’s so mysterious about this
particular man? Answer: He’s obviously quite obsessed by the Status Quo sound
of the late 60’s/early 70’s. Riding damn hard on boogie rock and mere hints of
The Small Faces train, Sweden’s Anders Bodin (vocals/guitars) manage to avoid
the usual ‘hip factor’ traps on his latest album. Sure, it’s hardly the most
original sounding effort as of lately, however, it’s jam-packed with basic
boogie, hammond organ, and straight forward rock, straight from the heart.
Anyone with a weakness for simplicity and mid-paced rock served with lyrics
that are saying something worth saying without actually saying it (huh? well,
it’s basically everything from simple things in life to more complex living),
could do worse than checking out this particular CD.
It’s been nicely produced in a retro way of thinking and the hammond organ –
just as important to the overall sound as the guitar. I personally enjoy the
Status Quo sound from the year of approx: 1976 and forward. Sadly, ‘Mysterious
Man’ is recorded in the vein of the era of 1968 to 1974 and thus being more
about, ‘Pictures Of Matchstick Men”, than fun twelve bar boogie ‘ala
“Rockin’ All Over The World”. Most of the record is adequate,
occasionally catchy rock with a tendency towards the hippie. For the most part,
it veers towards the average and merely the honest approach of the band is
simply not enough in the long run. Have a go at this if you’re into the ancient
“Quo” while the rest of us may not enjoy it as much.
