Down to the cover art, down to the subject matter, down to the backing band, Bradley wears his influences on his sleeve. On his face. On his face sleeve. Like a mask. 70's soul, soul, funk, soul soul.
Vocally, dude pulls it off. Dude can sing, with plenty of gravelly character to offset the smooth croonin'. But the band's a big muddy in the mix, and the songwriting doesn't know how to grow outside of its influences, running out of ideas and interest somewhere around Where Do We Go From Here?
The faster songs are highlights, especially the restless bass on Strictly Reserved for You and the relentless organ chug on Love Bug Blues; even the dub-dusted instrumental Dusty Blue is more fun than it ought to be. But too many of the songs sound too familiar: Confusion rips off the intro (and much of the feel) from If There's a Hell Below pretty baldly, minus the mystery and menace.
Revival is fine. Homage is fine. But Bradley needs to forge a potent vision to match his potent voice if he's going to grow out of the shadows of his forebears 3/5
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