Release Date: 24th November 2023
Hovering somewhere in hard rock obscurity, WeirdWolf are the UK’s response to some of the southern rock bands that the US produces. You know the ones, they burst out of school with a huge track with all sorts of grooved up influences and open a stage at Download but are then never seen again. Luckily, Wierdwolf bring decades of combined experience together to this new project, a potentially key ingredient when entering a busy market.
Mild Fantasy Peril is the first full-length release from the north of England four-piece and it is plain to see from the off that this is a band that works well together. ‘Thrum’ opens the album and it’s impossible to not know what sort of album you’ve got yourself into. Along with ‘Keep Your Fever’, the biggest, heaviest and quite possibly best song of the eleven featured on Mild Fantasy Peril, listeners of the likes of Clutch and evesome old Black Stone Cherry can sit back and relax, here we go with the the riffs. Oh and then some more riffs, and a bit of a riff too. This is rock in one of its purest forms. On a track that contains so much energy it’s the lead vocals that enhance the track further. There’s a touch of Neil Fallon to them and they’re a delightful accompaniment to the sheer infectiousness of the song from start to finish.
Maintaining that energy would be difficult and that’s something that the band recognise with ‘Neon Bones’ taking a slight deviation and bringing a more psychedelic-fuelled approach, not entirely surprising given the name. The track combines influences from some of the post-Britpop era with American-style psychedelic rock before ‘Good Touch’ takes things towards a bit more of a classic rock vibe.
As the second half of the album kicks off ‘One Fine Day’ brings the easiest singalong of the album, vocally reminiscent of bands like InMe in places and Faith No More in others, the range of styles on show being impressive and keeping each track fresh. Between ‘Minotaur’ and ‘Disco Lizard’ alone there’s a huge variation. The former leaning more into the 70s vibe with the guitars and creating a gentler atmosphere before ‘Disco Lizard’ tees up the final third of the album in punkier style. Keeping the quality up whilst mixing things around is tricky to achieve but something that is accomplished consistently well across the album. The final tracks continue this, ‘The Peril of Inertia’ being nicely polished musically but with vocals that verge on raw and ‘Prescience’, the closer, shy of being the longest track on the album by a few seconds, where the riff runs amok from start to finish.
WeirdWolf isn’t your standard band. It isn’t just a project really, it’s a bunch of mates making music that they enjoy after spending years playing with other bands. It’s not exactly pulling up trees in terms of style but it’s a fun listen and showcases what experience plus talent can do when the pressure is off.
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