R*N*R
2007 LP A Rumour of Truth
Reviewed by Stu Wright
8 November 2007
R*N*R are an Adelaide Four Piece group, comprising of Adam Jacobs (Vox/Guitar), Mat Long (Bass & Guitar), Josh Anderson (Guitar & Production) and Paul Malyon (Drums & Percussion). R*N*R have been together for around eighteen months, and this is the follow-up release to their 2006 EP Freedom.
In a move that certainly is becoming more widespread with the demise in domination of the major labels (and entire record industry and system of record release as we know it), R*N*R have produced their debut album completely independently. And what a great job they’ve done too.
R*N*R have produced a complex, diverse offering, which is quite different to much of what is on offer at the moment. In other words, if your head is completely done in by the whole EVERMORE soft rock genre hijacking of the Australian industry, then R*N*R could be your ticket.
Don’t go looking for highly polished (although for an Indie release, it’s VERY good) recording and sampling (the drum sounds could have used some samples just to bring them into the mix with some presence), but there’s just an older school attitude here and a willingness to experiment that is very sadly lacking in some other, higher profile contemporary releases.
There are a whole range of influences happening here, from Pearl Jam to Van Halen to Cat Stevens, and I feel that overall R*N*R capture the Classic Rock to Post Grunge feel very well. Their sound comes from a time where it mattered if you could play your instrument, and there is a definite maturity in their arrangements and delivery.
Stand out tracks include For Love (a fantastic opener) which features 80’s guitars and brilliant layering during the chorus’s (it’s hypnotic), Healing (think Cake meets The Spindoctors – very clever), Love You Better is a great acoustic ballad with very effective percussive elements, Something More captures the sound of Seattle perfectly (this could make a Pearl Jam album - Eddie Vedder take notice!) and closing track Witness rocks with ferocity and attitude – a great closing statement.
To quote the band:”The R*N*R audience are essentially the children of the Baby Boomers, who feel that mainstream music has become formulaic. They have a diverse musical taste and enjoy the journey that is the Rock soundscape. They also long for a sound that doesn’t take itself too seriously, yet, at the same time does not treat them like inept music appreciators.”
Enough said. Overall, A Rumour of Truth is a very solid debut album without fillers and with an attitude that one hopes will see R*N*R do well. Recommended.
