Album Review: The 1-10's - Fighting for a Golden Age

As also seen on The Klepto's Guide:

Another day, another new band to the scene. I know almost nothing about The 1-10's and there isn't a lot of info about them on the web, which I blame Google's inability to properly search 'The 1-10's.' The only reliable thing I can find, besides other reviews of their debut album, Fighting for a Golden Age, and the like, is their BandCamp page (where you can buy the LP or get 3 singles for free), so this is what I am going off of. The claim to be compared to "Alice in Chains, Wolfmother, and Queens of the Stone Age," and being "labeled as an 'angrier Mumford and Sons,'" whatever that means. Honestly their description does nothing to describe the act's sound, and honestly, I'm not sure if I could do any better.

You see, based solely on the music, the group is an interesting blending of numerous styles and influences. Although clearly in the stoner bracket, there is a southern rock feel throughout, with some sections breaking more into blues and even a bit punky at times. "Run From Your Master" is a straight-forward stoner rocker, "Bad Day" is all blues rock, while "Eye for an Eye" sounds more like it should be coming from an alternative folk band then anything claiming to be metal. With this cacophony of sound and style there is a continual thought that occupies my head; the singer from The 1-10's sounds like the singer from The Black Crowes has joined a stoner rock band. I keep waiting for them to break out into a punk-version of "Hard To Handle." It's weird, I know, but I can't shake the feeling within every song that is played.

Taken by itself, each song is pretty good, and I could really see some sort of re-playability with them, but if you focus on the big picture, Fighting for a Golden Age is just a little bit too scattered for my tastes. I'm sure they would be sweet to see live (they claim so anyway), but I would only see them as an opening act (or if the tickets were dirt cheap), not as the headliner. I just can't imagine too much time spent on this act.

Bandcamp