Album Review: Butterfly - Doorways of Time
Reviewed by Paul Hutchings
The first stop with this album by Aussies retro rockers Butterfly is the striking cover on ‘Doorways of Time’. Designed and delivered by Rodney Matthews, whose artwork defined hard rock in the 1980s with his iconic paintings for the likes of Magnum and Praying Mantis, it’s an eye-catching start to an album that is a journey back to a time when multiple genres didn’t exist.
Delve beneath the surface and you find four experienced musicians whose history with the hard rock scene in the Melbourne scene dates back many years. No subgenres, no pigeon-holing, just 37 minutes of music that contains old school NWOBHM sounding metal, with a side serving of psychedelia and the odd more intense metal passage.
It may not be meant as a nostalgia trip, but there is no way that this album can be viewed as anything but, given the sheer swagger of 45 years ago that wafts like lighted joint smoke. The slow, meandering feel of ‘Desert Chase’, with its twin guitar and vocal harmonies and the familiar riffs on ‘Climbing a Mountain’ instantly transport you to the land of flared jeans. The latter paying homage to both Wishbone Ash and Kiss in the same song!
It’s a musical soundscape that Butterfly create with effortless flavour. Images of flapping flares, bizarre dancing and the meandering rock jams come to mind, as the band progress through 37 minutes of retro rock. There are various musicians that spring to mind on every track. ‘Heavy Metal Highway’, with it’s Ted Nugent ‘Stranglehold’ feel prominent, whilst the six-minute ‘Crawling kicks’ off with a riff stolen from Rush’s ‘Working Man’.
It may be music that has played before, but these days recycling is to be applauded. Butterfly’s ability to blend old school flavours with their own magical twists makes ‘Doorways of Time’ a pleasing album to experience.
