REVIEW : Silverlites - The Midlands Rocks

Musicians are a funny breed and putting several well known names together is no recipe for success; get the fusion right and things can fizz and bubble nicely, but mix those chemicals wrong and you can have an implosion of nuclear proportions. When it comes to The Silverlites and their self-titled album, I’m happy to report that it falls firmly in the first camp. A supergroup of sorts, The Silverlites bring decades of experience to bear and in doing so serve up a perfect slice of Americana.

The idea for The Silverlites formulated when drummer Barrett Martin (The Screaming Trees) and Rich Robinson (The Black Crowes) performed together in a tribute to Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page. Fast forward four years and the seed that was sown found the pair calling Peter Buck (R.E.M.) and singer/songwriter Joseph Arthur with the aim of creating music that was as inventive and forward facing as that made by the mighty Zeppelin. However, as the band proved with their debut album, they are no mere copyists and their influences are merely a convenient point of reference and they’ve produced an album in The Silverlites that has more in common with the sun-kissed sounds of California, rather than the rainy skies of the British blues boom. That becomes immediately apparent on the quiet storm that is opening track ‘Still Don’t Know You’, a song that would make the perfect companion to a road trip ‘neath bruised coloured Arizona skies. A shot of musical Novocaine, it encases the listener in a warm, fuzzy ball with guitars that cascade gently and Barrett Martin plays the drums in equally subdued fashion, showing great restraint and in doing so gives the track a hypnotic quality. In fact, if there’s one thing that unites these dozen diverse tracks then it is an ethereal quality. Songs such as ‘Dark And Magic Sky’ emanate as if from another dimension, capturing that magical moment between wake and sleep and are akin to basking in the warmth of a half-remembered dream.

The Silverlites aren’t resting on past glories, either as musicians or as songwriters, but one thing they have taken from a bygone era is the strong focus on song structure and melody, and the idea that writing songs was a craft. Subsequently, these tracks are well measured and the band bring it all together on ‘Looking For A Friend’, holding back the guitar solo to ensure it appears at the optimum moment, and for maximum impact. Fans of The Byrds, Neil Young and, yes, Led Zeppelin will find a spiritual home here, as will anyone who enjoys thoughtful, well composed music.

The Silverlites is released digitally via Sunyata Records on 15th November 2024. A CD version (with bonus six-track EP) will be released on 10th January 2025, while a vinyl version will be released on Record Store Day 2025.

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