ARTIST PROFILES: HOTEL WAR ~ BusTown Music Reviews

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

ARTIST PROFILES: HOTEL WAR

BUSTOWN MUSIC

Written by Raad Shubaily

The White Stripes may have thrown in the towel, but blues-rock has not. This is exceedingly apparent if you ever find yourself in a bar and Hotel War is in the building. Before I ever saw the trio, a friend told me “They’re sort of harder, man. Good harder, though.”

I didn’t know how to feel about such a vague statement. The band I’m in had a gig lined up with Hotel War, so when the night finally came, I took the opportunity to check out their set. That was not the last time I saw them, and their performance last Friday at the Rumba café won’t be either.

What my friend was trying to say is that they rock hard. Super hard. Building spiraling melodic structures around bluesy, gritty riffs seems to be an area of expertise for them. Think ‘The Black Keys’ meets ‘The White Stripes’ and every band from the 70’s that meant anything at all to rock and roll. Singer Curt Apwisch has the croon of an early Caleb Followill from Kings of Leon, piled on top of mountainous distortion and sweeping guitar riffs.

The EP Hotel War released earlier this year, Rebels Out of Time, provides a great snapshot of their musical direction. It captures their timeless rock and roll attitude perfectly. The opening lyrics even prove it, with Apwisch singing “I feel wild and crazy / I feel so amazing / wild and young and wasted.”

Hotel War makes a lot of sound for a three-piece, and you won’t soon forget it. Rebels Out of Time is available on a name-your-own-price basis, and it’s highly recommended by us here at Bustown Music that you do go name your price. If you’ve ever listened to rock or blues music in your entire life, you will like this band. It’s impossible not to.