Album Review: The Dust Coda - Mojo Skyline
Reviewed by Paul Hutchings
Like it or loathe it, the New Wave of British Classic Rock is most definitely a thing. Like any genre, be it thrash, stoner or death metal, the inevitable lumping together of bands under a label means that the cream doesn’t always rise to the top immediately. The Dust Coda are a band that have been creating a little excitement for some time, and ‘Mojo Skyline’, their sophomore album has been highly anticipated.
Much of the band’s press release centres on their inclusion on the bill in 2021’s Ramblin’ Man Fair. Whilst we can’t know at this stage whether they will get to strut the main stage at the festival, we can take a deep dive into ‘Mojo Skyline’ and see whether they have the chops to get to the podium.
The London based quartet have delivered an assured and confident record. It’s nicely produced, allowing the band’s gritty edge to remain whilst some other aspects are polished neatly. The album follows the standard blueprint that you’d expect. The bluesy swagger that is earning the band new fans daily is evident in the opening track, ‘Demon’, which bears more than a passing resemblance to Wolfmother’s antipodean stomp and the Audioslave drenched sound of ‘Breakdown’ has a hook big enough to land an orca.
It’s true that there is nothing new in music and The Dust Coda tap in deep to the classic influences. There’s nothing wrong with that in my opinion, and as the album develops, there is plenty here to enjoy. The riff heavy ‘Limbo Man’ will get those festival crowds jumping whilst the assured third single ‘Jimmy 2 Times’ is underpinned by a delicious groove and stomp that screams old school and contemporary at the same time.
The Southern feel that pulses through much of The Dust Coda’s sound comes to the fore on ‘Bourbon Pouring’, a song that wouldn’t be out of place on an album by the much missed The Temperance Movement or even the mighty Blackberry Smoke. It’s a smouldering, gentle workout that shows a different side to the good time stomp of much of the album and brings a little pause; this is a song that will be perfect to take the heat down a little in the live arena.
Elsewhere ‘She’s Gone’ is solid, a schmaltzy hybrid of Alter Bridge and Aerosmith, ‘They Don’t Know Rock n’ Roll’ has encore material written all over it, whilst the feel-good vibe of ‘It’s A Jam’ is a decent album closer.
My biggest criticism of this album is that The Dust Coda are still struggling to find their own identity. There are too many songs where you instantly hear the style of another band. Unlike the bands at the top of this genre, Bad Touch and Those Damn Crows for example, The Dust Coda aren’t quite at the summit yet. But there is ample enjoyment in ‘Mojo Skyline’. John Drake has a great voice, whilst the rest of the band, Adam Mackie (lead guitar), drummer Scott Miller and Tony Ho (bass) are all excellent musicians. If they can tweak their sound and maintain the momentum for album number 3, they may well be a band on the scene for a long time to come.
