Howlin' Rain - Magnificent Fiend

Upon hearing this record for the first time, it's impossible not to imagine the characters of both Almost Famous and Dazed and Confused having some sort of big house party, and a bloody good time at it. Howlin' Rain's sound borrows heavily from 1970s rock and some of the less raucous moments of lead man Ethan Miller's other musical interest, Comets on Fire. So, as you'd possibly expect, there's a fair bit of good-natured and entirely enjoyable musical wankery here: extended drum fills, guitar and organ solos and vocal gymnastics. Highlights include Lord Have Mercy, which shifts from funk-drenched finesse to an all-out rock beast, and Riverboat - which has the plaintive sound of homesickness, and keys weighted heavy with a perversely joyous kind of sorrow. Magnificent Fiend does walk a thin line between homage and accidental parody, but stays carefully on the right side. Despite too many mentions of 'home' and 'mama', this is a quality piece of southern-fried rock. [Matt Gollock]