New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ Shore Fire Media) On June 18, Yamaha Entertainment Group of
America will release LEOGUN's debut full-length, 'By The Reins.' As the label's flagship act, the heavy-riffing British trio is ringing in a rock revival, according to critics. Says the Charleston City Paper: "The bravado, the brashness and the unadulterated emotion that made rock-'n'-roll great ... LEOGUN is taking all that back."
Listen to "Piggy In The Middle" via Guitar Player here: https://www.guitarplayer.com/article/gp-exclusive-song-premiere-leoguns-piggy-in-the-middle/151587
Recorded to tape at Yamaha Entertainment Group's own studio in Nashville, 'By The Reins' is laden with frontman Tommy Smith's hulking guitar riffs, which, combined with the equally dexterous work of bassist Matt Johnson and drummer Mike Lloyd, have prompted comparisons to Queens of the Stone Age and The Raconteurs. In the words of AOL Noisecreep, LEOGUN delivers "the kind of blues-soaked hard rock that fans of Humble Pie,
Led Zeppelin and
Thin Lizzy wouldn't kick out of bed."
For Smith — whose hair and demeanor help explain the LEOGUN ("half man, half lion") name — it's been a long path from first hearing the blues at age eight to sharing the stage with
Lynyrd Skynyrd and rubbing shoulders with Jimmy Page. Months of recent touring and recording in the U.S. have only strengthened the connection he and his bandmates feel to blues tradition. That inspiration runs through 'By The Reins,' from the smoky, soulful groove of the title track to the up-tempo crunch of "Let's Be Friends." "
Do What You Do" is built around a bass line Bootsy Collins would be proud of, while a string arrangement gilds the unexpected ballad "Another Lost Soul." Lyrically, Smith pays tribute to classic rock-'n'-roll themes like unrequited love and hard living, all delivered in his otherworldly howl.
LEOGUN arrive as the heirs to a storied rock legacy, "merging woozy blues, ass-kicking riffing and pounding rhythms, it's as if Mount Olympus handed down the torch to this trio," says Artist Direct. "It's the start of a new rock revolution. Once this gun blasts, everything's going to go up in flames."
