The Urban Voodoo Machine / January Blues & Rhinestone Cowboy
29th January 2018After saying Goodbye To Another Year over the festive holiday in true UVM fashion, The Urban Voodoo Machine kick off the new year with January Blues ā a bittersweet take on letting go of the past and facing up to what the coming months have on offer. On the flipside is the bandās London/Soho-centric take on the classic Rhinestone Cowboy in memory of the recent passing of country legend Glen Campbell. The single marks the opening shot for the bandās upcoming album 15 Shots From The Urban Voodoo Machine, which celebrates the bandās 15-year anniversary and features all the UVM single releases including their latest January Blues.
Beginning with a lonesome guitar and frontman Paul-Ronney Angelās whiskey drenched vocal, January Blues builds up to an chaotic climax as the rest of the band join in to create a raucous anthem for the downtrodden and ripped off. Itās a mash-up of guitars, drums, upright bass, horns, violin, piano, accordion, bouzouki, Hammond organ and more.
Despite the instrumentation, Angel insists that āweāre not Americana and weāre definitely not
retroā¦ I write songs about living in London right now. Although having a s**t time, no money, heartbreak, mental illness, addiction and suppression from āthe big guyā is kinda universal and timeless.ā
Looking further into the bandās history, itās little surprise that frontman Paul-Ronney Angel takes such a bleak view, having lost guitarist Nick Marsh to throat cancer and violinist Rob Skipper to an accidental heroin overdose in recent years. Combined with a world that looks to be heading ever faster toward Armageddon, January Blues references recent events such as Brexit and the election of Trump ā āHere comes the inaugurationā¦morons sweeping through the nationsā.
Having played Glastonbury, Download, Latitude, Bestival and Hard Rock Calling, toured with The Pogues, the New York Dolls plus received love & support from Radio 2ās Paul Jones & Huey Morgan, 6Musicās Gideon Coe & Chris Hawkins, the Guardian, Q Mag, Classic Rock and Vive Le Rock for their previous albums, The Urban Voodoo Machine enter the new year as one of the greatest live acts in the country ā terrifyingly bizarre, hysterically funny, a riot for the eyes and sensation for the ears, determined to stand up to āThe Manā and overcome all negative aspects of Brexit, austerity, division, fear and the threat to live music venues across the land. Never fear though, The Urban Voodoo Machine aināt going nowhere! Please check their website for their ever busy touring schedule to find a gig near you.
[…] All About The Rock reviews the two singles January Blues and Rhinestone Cowboy, covering the content and inspirations of both tracks. Check it out here! […]