The third CD courtesy of the Milk Men. Previous offers were "Full Phat" (2016) and "Gold Top" (2018) and now this year the new one called "Deliverance". If you see a pattern here, call yourself a genius. To get this out of the way, it seems highly unlikely that you'll find one of their CDs in a regular record shop. Best avenue to take is point your browser at http://themilkmenmusic.com and have your credit card ready.
I don't know much about the Milk Men except that a) their drummer toured with the Pirates at the end of their tenure and b) their bass player is the son of the great Mick Green. There you have it, all the right reasons to buy their CDs. The full line-up consists of:
Adam Norsworthy - Guitars (plus Keyboards and Percussion)
Jamie Smy - Vocals
Mike Roberts - Drums
Lloyd Green - Bass
The new album has been recorded in February 2020 and probably due to Covid-19 and the lack of promotion on the road, almost sunk without a trace. Which is a shame really, as this is definitely one of the CDs that would deserve a wider distribution among the cognoscenti. I haven't picked the earlier CDs yet from my collection, as I like to assess an album first on its own. If I'm not completely off my bearings, this time there's much more Blues in the offering. This is R'n'B in the best tradition of the U.K. scene and tracks like "Bad Girl" remind me of a long line of bands but the Milk Men present their music with their own twist.
Jamie Smy does a very good job and his vocals are bull's eye. He's got a somewhat rough voice for singing purposes and it's just the right amount of whisky and smoke. Not overdone to the point of ridiculousness. Most songs are the faster paced ones, but there's "Why Can't You Stay?" for the ones waiting to get their lighters out and get all misty eyed. Except maybe "One More Day", this'll be your last chance before the motorway.
A remarkable job on guitars by Adam Norsworthy. I quite like his relaxed style of playing, not to insinuate yawnsville, quite the contrary, I'm actually quite taken by his performance. Mike Roberts I got to know during a tour in Finland with the Pirates and Doctor's Order, that's way back when ... he's definitely one of the good guys (personally as well as behind his drum kit). On bass is Lloyd Green and his playing is stellar.
Sometime I think, "where have I heard this one?", as with the rhythm in "Taking Her Time", I'm quite sure I have the original, where this is lifted from, somewhere in my collection. I'm leaning towards a Rolling Stones riff. In general, the album is for you if you can spell Pubrock without failing and as the term includes a wide range of styles, you can choose your position. To me, this is a very enjoyable 38 minutes of listening pleasure. Get you copy at the URL above. Bands like the Milk Men need your support and you'll be rewarded with good music.
Cheers
Roland
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