Album Reviews

The Dutch dudes that make up John Coffey are back and they want you to know it as soon as opening track “Eagle Chasing Flies” bursts out of the speakers. They start off with a little bit of feedback, which is followed by a nasty riff that’s excellent for drunk dancing. Next up is vocalist David Achter de molen, who comes in with his throaty roar alongside some downright dirty riffing. The band then goes into a catchy chorus, throw in a riff for about five seconds that sounds like it was written by John Barry for a James Bond movie before tearing into a full-fledged guitar solo only to then go out in a sludgy haze. And that’s just the first song.

Next up is “Broke Neck” with some singalong action. “Jean Trompette” is a short interlude that wouldn’t have looked out of place on the soundtrack of “The Salton Sea” and sees the band whipping out a trumpet, which then segues its way nicely into “Heart Of A Traitor”. On the surprisingly atmospheric “It’s Beginning To Change” John Coffey prove they are just as effective when they slow things down. The surprises just keep on coming basically. There’s one waiting in pretty much every single song and producer Matt Goldman (Underoath, The Chariot) is the guy that managed to capture it all on tape. Every now and again a song like “The Sinking Ship” comes along that can’t seem to decide which direction it wants to head in and as a result ends up trapped. But you simply don’t have enough time to let it sink in because the band keeps on bludgeoning you with more riffs.

In short, if you thought “Bright Companions” was pretty damn good, you are going to love “The Great News”. It’s everything you liked about John Coffey before, only bigger, fiercer and more melodic.