sHEAVY music is a validation of synchronisation

If second sHEAVY album (‘The Electric Sleep’, 1998) made people take notice because it sounded like Black Sabbath and Ozzy cut an album on the quiet, the Canadian combo’s fourth full-length release does less so despite being produced by Mike Butcher, da Sabbaff’s knob-meister on the platters such as ‘Sabbath Bloody Sabbath’ and ‘Sabotage’. (The album in-between was issued in 2000, ‘Celestial HiFi’, that explored more of a psychedelic, gravitational force that continued to scorch with some heavy grooved riffs.)

‘Synchronised’ is sHEAVY’s album that spreads the wings even further and there are moments that truly recall the spirit of Thin Lizzy, Deep Purple, some other proggers (Queensrÿche, or further in time – Styx) and, even, Led Zeppelin. None of it is anything like a tribute but certainly Hard Rock of the kind these bands could have cut. ‘Firebird350’ leads us into this selection with vitality and pace and drive-machine theme continues on ‘Last Of The V8 Interceptors’, only to be cruising in a Bad Company’s rock-ballad mode on ‘Next Exit To Vertigo’.

Fronted by Steve Hennessy, the quartet simply follows their hearts and songs’ requirements: ‘Part of The Machine’ goes to the depths of Peter Gabriel’s inner analysing, the title track explodes with string-synth unity to create an aural delicacy that is cherry-topped with contemplative ‘Ultraglide’ (it pishes all over Nickelback!) or the sci-fi rocktastic ‘Set Phasers To Stun’! One of the more intriguingly named songs is ‘Kill Queens Go Disco’, its title inspired by Hennessy’s venture into scriptwriting for a forthcoming desert porno movie.

The entirely brilliant tweak arrives with the closing track that sounds like they travelled back in time and ‘sampled’ a bit of Zepp and a tad of Yes for a cut that is in a course to the outer rim. Most puzzlingly, despite the artwork naming 11 songs, the CD contains only 10; ‘The Time Machine’ is missing and, unless one is supposed to access it via computer’s time-tunnel, I dunno otherwise.

‘Synchronized’ is extremely enjoyable disc that really doesn’t map any new ground but re-explores the catalogued one with respect, love and care. And, that is honest.

7.3/10