Delta Deep – East Coast Live – Album Review

While experience doesn’t always guarantee solid results, Delta Deep bring hard-rocking know-how back to the blues. Combining their talents between bands like Stone Temple Pilots, Def Leppard, and even TLC and Luther Vandross, the band’s powerful performances take blues beyond its predictable trappings and completely escape any negative sides of a live album sound.

The face-melting pedigree of the band is immediately noticeable as the album opens on a tearing rendition of “Black Dog” that lets you know the band means business. Through much of the album however it’s the blues leanings that the band brings to their heavy metal sound on tracks like “Bang The Lid” and “Miss Me” that makes it feel like a truly refreshing record for  both genres. While “Treat Her Like Candy really starts to lean into the blues, Black-well Cook’s insane vocal range ends up making it a totally unique listen compared to even the roaring of “Black Coffee.”

For the most classic blues-rock of the album “Burnt Sally/Rock Me” and “Whiskey” falls back into tradition with a smirk, while picking calculated moments to explode into a wailing vocal or fiery solo to take it over the top. “Private Number” switches to a much more sultry swing in its rhythm, blending a lot of the band’s more modern sensibilities into its blues sound. “Shuffle Sweet” grinds out the metal riffs, while “Bless These Blues” really grimes up its hooks for a Dead Weather-like take on the muddy sounds of the Delta. The end of the album however stirs up some of the band’s best work, between the booming pop of “Feelit,” the epic soundwork and writing of “Mistreated” and the downright powerful melodies behind “Down In The Delta,” coming together to give the album a powerful finale.