Formed in 2003 Melbourne based Electric Mary has survived several member changes and an ever-changing musical landscape, and for that alone, they should be lauded.
But after five albums, the band is back with what might be a career-defining single—The King of Rock ‘N’ Roll. The new track is replete with loads of retro rock muscle and a few other alluring surprises.
Perhaps what is curious about Electric Mary is its reception elsewhere, that is, Europe. Rock N’ Load Mag EU has called the band ‘Globally renowned for their explosive brain-bending live performances’, and Rocktopia U.K has referred to them as ‘Compelling, Authentic and Absolutely Vital’.
No doubt it’s the European hunger for good old hard rock that’s at play here, but my guess is that there’s also something characteristically Australian that tempts our far-off neighbours. Think AC/DC, Airbourne, etc. The new release is an aptly titled blend of rock that begins as a retro appropriation but ends with a surprise amalgamation of other styles that sound inconspicuously or not like glam, rock and pop.
But more about that later. The King of Rock ‘N’ Roll begins as a traditional guitar riff-driven exercise, with a Led Zep like pattern of an alternating verse and riff arrangement that serves a few purposes—most persuasively, the dynamics. This verse, riff interplay segues into a chorus that doesn’t necessarily take off in the way we think it might; it simply goes to a chord change via an all-in accent and into a two-bar break, allowing the effected vocal to suggest yet another style configuration.
‘Bluesy and soulful, with lashings of vocals and a kind of swaggering charm with such a disparate temperament, it almost feels like another track.
Another cycle of this leads us to two guitar solos, quite distinct from each other as far as blazing guitar solos go and not so breakneck that they’re without melodic merit. So far, so good. But around the corner, following the break after the solos, comes the unanticipated. Bluesy and soulful, with lashings of vocals and a kind of swaggering charm with such a disparate temperament, it almost feels like another track.
But that’s a good thing. The listener’s surprise, expectation pattern is broken, and they’re exposed to what is essentially a rousing kind of rock send-off. Electric Mary has attracted millions of collective Spotify streams, including the single, Let Me Out, nudging 2 million hits.
There’s no reason why The King of Rock ‘N’ Roll will stifle that upward trajectory, in fact, it just might make those numbers skyrocket.
LISTEN TO ELECTRIC MARY HERE ONCE RELEASED: