New Artist Alert: Bobaflex - Bad Men

It's been a while! Apologies to readers who may expect posts on a more regular basis, but I've just started my first teaching job which is exceptionally full-on at the moment (and doesn't show much sign of slowing either!). Considering this, all I can promise is that I'll post when I can. And, as with waiting for a bus, a quiet inbox has recently been inundated with requests for features, so I'll get through things as quickly as I can.

Starting things off is Bobaflex, veteran American rockers who are currently promoting the release of their sixth studio album Charlatan's Web, the follow-up to 2011's Hell in my Heart. There's a lot of history to the band, and the angsty, feudal past still spills into the feel of the music, as lead-single Bad Man, for which you can see the official video for below, stands testament to.

The intro is fairly tame; a quick progression that wastes no time in kicking off whilst foot-tapping metal lead by a strong lead-guitar riff takes us quickly through the verse. The vocals hit a low-fi feel for the succinct pre-chorus before the main-event, a driving melodic chorus that fills my ears. It's written and performed confidently and, with a huge open sound and some great melodies tracking the lead vocals, is just as short as its predecessing sections; a real tease of what's to come. The band opens things up further with an extended musical section, intended as either a post-chorus or pre-verse helping, and it's here you realise we're only a minute in and have been already been treated to so much. Countless bands will while-away with unnecessary intros and extensions of sections, but Bobaflex mean business and they want you to know about it. The video is fairly simple yet effective with a great lighting rig and pyro set-up; the band look as if they've been around a while but know how to perform - the production and performance is awesome. The track lasts just over 3 minutes but after the second chorus there's still time for a guitar solo before we go around a slick final chorus and outro. This track is a real rocker and, if it's anything to go by, the whole album is sure to be a pleasure to listen to.

Bad Man is currently doing the rounds on American radio and the album is available from the merch section of the band's official website here. Be sure to keep up to date with the guys on Facebook, and you can catch the official video for Bad Man below.