Australian rockers Sotu have released their debut self titled album.The Australian five piece was initially formed in the 90s, and reformed in 2016 with a new drummer, new name, and a new drive for making music.Emerging partly as a lifeline for one of the band’s members as he climbed out of a dark place, Sotu’s debut album is a reflection of the joy of rediscovering music coupled with the intense journey of recovery and thriving in life after bouncing back from the brink of despair.
With kinetic energy bursting from the seams Sotu provides a powerful rock album filled with infectious grooves and swagger. The band pack oodles of slick guitar and passionate bass lines into their debut album.
‘Killing Me’, ‘Don’t Feel So Bad’ and ‘Cornflakes’ all rush through with adrenaline inducing instrumentation and fluctuant groovy rhythms. It’s not all rock and roll though ‘Eyes To Dry’ and the piano led ’World Turns’ showcase the bands emotional, more rock ballad – esque persona. There are plenty of visceral jolts throughout the album with melancholic guitar melodies, haunting backing vocals and sombre themes about dealing with cancer, domestic violence and relationships.
‘Gods Of Humility’ and ‘Alive’ are a joy to listen to. The tracks thrive on raw sharp guitars which meander between crashing lacerations, slinky flirtations and soft twinkles while animated drums and bass groove create the songs buoyant backbone.
Sotu present a sound filled with 90’s rock elements with a nod to Foo Fighters at times.The tracks are dripping in passion with shredding solo’s, blistering licks and powerful rasped vocals. Sonically the band weave between scorching alternative rock with some grunge elements and even a glimmer of jazz and funk. It’s within the sublime guitar work and ground shaking bass lines where this band shine at the moment.Gritty tracks such as ‘Neighbours’ and ‘Black Hole Cryptic’ showcase the bands darker side while ‘Timmy’ has a twanging country bounce. However these tracks blend seamlessly with the softer ballads within the album.
Sotu’s self-titled debut album is a thought provoking collection of tracks displaying fine musicianship and artistic promise. Oozing maturity and mosh-ready frenzy swirling beneath infectious grooves and dizzying psychedelia ‘Sotu’ is a well rounded debut album.
Stream ‘Sotu’ below
Author : Danu
