The Quill have been doing this a long time; their first album was released in 1995 so if they didn’t have their classic rock cum stoner-lite style down there would be something wrong.
Admittedly the album isn’t as unexpected, or as ferociously, peeking through the fingers, entertaining as the title suggests. This isn’t a complete breakdown, but a solid continuation of what these guys do.
Five tracks, including the awesome opener ‘Freak Parade’, in and you’ve had some irresistible guitar hooks thrown in, not to mention a few decent solos, while Magz Arnar does his best Chris Cornell impression. Then the Swedes hit a new stride, the impressive pomp of ‘Purgatory Hill’ which momentarily lifts the album before dropping into ballad territory.
It’s not that ‘Land Of Gold And Honey’ is bad, in fact the Led Zepplin-style guitar work is excellent, but it drags down the pace and the mood of what should have being a balls-out, feel good rock album.
With only three songs left they never get back up to speed and the closer ‘Storm Before The Calm’ is just as chilled back, admittedly building to a suitable finale but it’s too little too late, sounding more like Black Stone Cherry at their most derivative.
Tiger Blood is solid, doing enough to please fans and pull in some new listeners, but it’s a long way from the “winning” album the collective talent here should be making.
6.5/10
Matthew Tilt