Review: Philip Sayce ‘The Wolves Are Coming’
By Martine Ehrenclou
A monster guitar player and vocalist, Philip Sayce is set to release his first album in three years, The Wolves Are Coming, out February 23rd. Conceived during the pandemic, the record is fierce, a wild ride in the back seat of a hot rod, your feet nowhere near the brakes.
Sayce toured internationally with the great Jeff Healey. After a move to Los Angeles from Toronto, Sayce toured and recorded for years with Melissa Etheridge and her band before embarking on his solo career. His last and 7th album Spirit Rising earned over 14 million streams to date.
Enter The Wolves Are Coming, which captures the fire and energy of Philip Sayce’s live performances. He stands on the edge of rock, blues-rock, psychedelia and funk, slinging guitar riffs at warped speed. It’s a powerful release with insane guitar playing, commanding vocals and songwriting. But the album also has a softer side. There’s funky grooves about love, a tender instrumental that’s soulfully played. There’s a lot more going on with Sayce than just wild, sinister lyrics and mighty rock.
Produced by Sayce, The Wolves Are Coming was recorded at Station House Studio in Los Angeles, with Grammy winning engineer Mark Rains (Rival Sons, Shooter Jennings). Released on Sayce’s Atomic Gemini imprint with Forty Below Records, he brought in his long time collaborators Michael Leasure (drums), Aaron Sterling (drums), Fred Mandel (piano, organ) and vocalist Bernie Barlow.
A thunderclap of rock kicks open the album with “Oh! That Bitches Brew”, a hard rocker with hints of Zeppelin and Hendrix. After accepting a poisoned drink, Sayce sings, “I started to stagger, I went into a spin, devil double dosed me with a scorpion sting.” He unwinds a nightmarish tale, his band the muscle behind him. The drumming alone is explosive.
“These songs and stories came into focus during my darkest times,” says Philip. “The Wolves Are Coming” represents a bridge — a connection between despair and hope — that invites broken spirits to be transformed and healed.”
Shifting gears, “Lady Love Divine” is a funky, lighthearted tune about romantic love and attraction. With an infectious groove, it reflects a certain brightness in the rhythm and Sayce’s vocals, a stark contrast to some of the other tracks on the album.
Groove is not lost on Philip Sayce, even on his hard rockers with hair raising guitar solos. Take the song “Your Love” for instance, a modern rocker with wah wah pedal and overdriven guitar. It’s about fighting back against the devil’s influence. With this kind of high energy rock, things could easily slip off the rails, but not with Sayce and his superb group of musicians.
Slowing things down a bit for a rock ballad, Sayce takes a step back with “It’s Over Now” to evaluate where he’s been. It’s an honest song with unflinching self-reflection and a lovely melody. This track allows you to hear the nuances in Sayce’s vocals. It’s his softer, renewed side.
“Intuition” is a stunning guitar instrumental that’s more moody and moving than some songs with lyrics. For all the frenetic energy on the record, the song is a beauty with harmonies, until…. it launches into a hard rocker with a menacing vibe.
On the album, there are consistent themes of fighting back against negative forces, alongside songs about love, beauty and a lyrical approach to life and its meaning. It’s an interesting contradiction, like two waves crashing against one another. But somehow it works for Sayce, a musician with tremendous talent. He brings in fun, groovy songs like “This is Hip” (John Lee Hooker) and a blues kicker “The Moon Is Full” by Albert Collins just to spice things up.
A hard rocker in the vein of Led Zeppelin and Hendrix but totally unique in the Philip Sayce style is “Backstabbers.” He sings “Bastards grinding me down, prophets turn into clowns, hellhounds out on the trail, haters digging my grave.” He fights back and warns his attackers to watch their backs. He threatens them with sinewy guitar riffs and shredding, his weapon his music. What better way to retaliate than with a kick a** song?
Pre-order the album here
“Oh! That Bitch’s Brew”
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