Austin Gold – ‘Ain’t No Saint’

(TMR Rock Records)   

As an avid music lover, I keep my ear to the ground and keep them peeled for new bands and acts that would appeal to my personal tastes, so how the hell did Austin Gold sneak under my fences! ‘Ain’t No Saint’ is a total rock and roll banger and definitely ticks all the right boxes for me and I can’t get enough of it, it’s definitely my kind of thing! If you’re a Classic Rock fan you are sure to love the retro feel to this whilst appreciating the modern touches that freshen their sound. It’s not a classic but I don’t feel like it’s far off and it’s hard to find faults with it.

Austin Gold have a blatant British feel to them and make me think of bands like Gun, Little Angels, Thunder and Skin. I’m talking about those British Blues based Hard Rock acts of the early Nineties who meshed Classic Rock with strong melodic sensibilities generating a very commercial rock sound. I wouldn’t directly compare Gold to any of those aforementioned bands but had they been around back in the day they would have been given the same Brit Rock label and talked about in the same breath as them.

You’ll definitely hear all those Old School Classic Rock influences that you’ll hear others compare them to or cite as influences. The Led Zeppelin and Bad Company ones in particular are apparent but I’d even throw Dire Straits in the mix, especially on some of the atmospheric and Celtic flavoured moments that pop up.

I really took to the multi-layered full sound the band generate. You’ve got enticing rhythm guitars and lead guitar licks melded together to great effect which really hook me in! David James Smith has a great voice too, gritty when it needs to be but where he shines is in his smooth vocal melodies, that’s where his talents are shown off the best.

‘Ain’t No Saint’ is superb British flavoured Classic Rock which is highly recommended for genre fans who fancy it with a modern fresh additive thrown into the songwriting pot. Austin Gold and principal songwriter David James Smith are proof that theirs still life in the old Classic Rock dog yet! Combining a retro feel with a fresher modern take on the genre to deliver us some groove-tastic rock with strong melodies to get us rollin’!

9/10

Essential Track - 'Not Enough'

Review by Woody