It was late 2019 when Matt and Dom Buckland and drummer Alex Eve formed the trio Proper Job, with the intention of bringing blues into the 21st century. Eve served as a temper for the brothers who were rooted in their blues obsession, lending more of the classic rock one hears in their work.
Seeing some success with their singles ‘Loco-Motive’ and ‘Deceiver’, they were primed to take the stage when the COVID-19 pandemic brought that to a crashing halt. Eve, at this point, decided to bow out and so, The Buckland Bros were formed. Their influences include the likes of Porcupine Tree and Opeth, as well as John Mayer, Jimi Hendrix, BB King, and Gary Clark Jr.
This EP gives the impression of a well-constructed short live set. It begins with a more relaxed intro, quickly giving way to their classic hard rock chord progressions and up-tempo drums, before mellowing out again for the finale. Even down to the drum count in ‘For Queen & Country’, one could see this on stage.
A few things stand out when listening to The Buckland Bros; the first being their musical variety. ‘For Queen & Country’ leads with ambient slides before being broken rather sharply by a drum count and hard rock guitar. This stops the listener from growing complacent or being lulled into just one sound. A similar pattern is followed in ‘Giving Up & Letting Go’, which alternates between cool hard rock riffs and softer accompaniments with expressive vocals. Eventually, the vocals give way to a frenzied instrumental break before harnessing that and seeing the listener out. Needless to say, boredom is most certainly not an issue when listening to these tracks.
Another standout factor is the instrumentation. It is evident to see that The Buckland Bros have a strong passion for music and have done so for a long time. This becomes especially clear in the guitar solos in both ‘Giving Up & Letting Go’ and even more so in ‘The Battle Inside’. Both of these guitar solos come as a welcome change and break up the more lyrical moments.
As well as this, the songs are never overproduced. This is especially hard to do in a genre where noise is easy to come by. However, The Buckland Bros don’t seem to be afraid of leaving space for the layers of sound which makes the tracks stand out even more so. The vocals are one layer, becoming reminiscent of the sound of Gary Clark Jr. They are always expressive, especially in songs such as ‘For Queen & Country’ and ‘24’. In fact, ‘24’ is the most experimental of the tracks, carrying with it a slightly more relaxed and reflective tone. Interestingly, in terms of vocals, the lead into the chorus seems like a nod to The Beatles.
Ultimately, The Buckland Bros have shown that they can rock pretty hard and are worth a listen. ‘The Armageddon Game, Pt.1’ is out on all streaming platforms 28th February 2022.
Chloe Boehm
@chlojo98
Image: ‘The Armageddon Game, Pt 1’ Official EP Artwork
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