Two Gallants

The Bloom and the Blight (2012)

Joe Pelone

It's hard to get stoked on Two Gallants. They've got the fuzzy blues rock favored by the White Stripes and Black Lips, and they've even got the two-piece thing going on. Essentially, they're doing what other bands have done better, and even then, it's just a revival of music from decades gone by.

And yet, The Bloom and the Blight almost makes for a compelling listen. Two Gallants are at their best when they're in full Led Zep mode, like "Halcyon Days" or "My Love Won't Wait." Big booming guitars ‘n' drums ring out a la Portugal. The Man. These tunes are big lung-bursters with enough reverb to make you quake.

Unfortunately, Two Gallants want to be everything to everyone in the classic rock canon. That means that Bloom doesn't just settle for rocking bones. They gotta drop some ballads for the ladies, maybe throw in some ethereal stuff too. While tunes like "Broken Eyes" sound authentic (or at least as authentic as something ripping off Rod Stewart's Every Picture Tells a Story can be), they also don't really go anywhere or break out anything new. Sure, they provide breaks, thereby giving the rockin' bits more meaning, but overall, not all that important.

Bloom wants to be a classic rock throwback in as many ways as possible, which is something rock ‘n' roll doesn't really need any more of. While Adam Stephens and Tyson Vogel are competent players, but they lack the rawness that made the White Stripes and the Hives so compelling. For a back-to-basics style, Bloom sure does seem overstuffed.