Leroy From The North
Health & Fitness
Self-Release
Heavy, Heavy Alt. Country That Rocks.
Originally this was misfiled in my I-Tunes under the wrong name; and I was mystified when I very nearly reviewed it as a world-weary singer-songwriter’s latest release!
All’s well that ends well; and now Eli WulfMeier aka Leroy From The North’s debut EP and precursor to the Autumn release of a full album can get its full deserts on RMHQ, as it’s been a late night favourite in the Magmobile on the journey home from work.
Originally from Michigan and now based in LA, WulfMeier a) sure knows how to Rock in an Alt. Country manner and b) has great musical taste which really and truly influences all 5 songs here.
The fast and furious duelling guitars on opening track Into The Sunset set the tone for a Classic Poco/Eaglesish hybrid that will have you shuffling your feet and playing Air-Guitar like a spotty teenager while bellowing out the crusty chorus (or that may be just me!).
Who knew Country Rock could still have a melody and a chorus in 2019?
This followed by Fast Friends, which again features some dazzling fretwork, but is nailed very firmly to Daxx Neilson’s Industrial Strength drumming, which actually makes a refreshing change; and WulfMeier’s songwriting and storytelling ain’t too shabby either.
In his bio ‘Leroy From the North’ has played alongside a few ‘big hitters’ in the LA Alt. scene over the years, and the name Johnny Fritz popped up …… who’s Dad Country album is still a form favourite in the RMHQ stereo.
Track #3 Here in My Home is a lot ‘Heavier’ than I’d have expected; oddly enough making me think of Ronnie Van Zandt fronting Jon Lord era Deep Purple …….obviously I could be wrong; but not by much. The song still fits in perfectly well and is a counterpoint to the pure prairie Country of Locked Out which it precedes.
Then there is Hey Man (Hammerheads) which is a case of Leroy keeping the best (or is it The Beast?) for last, and easily the RMHQ Favourite Track here, as it is ‘heads down, pedal to the metal, full on Country Rock Thrash’ the likes of which I haven’t heard in donkeys years; and sounds like an ‘encore number’ if ever I’ve heard one!
It’s not clear if these songs will appear on the forthcoming album; but I presume they will; so use this as an exquisite ‘starter’ in readiness for the Meaty, Beaty, Big n Bouncy album that is bound to light up our lives.
Released August 2nd 2019
https://www.leroyfromthenorth.com/
The Rocking Magpie 