Electric Citizen – Higher Time album review

Ohio’s soulful psych metallers keep Sabbath’s bad dream alive

Electric Citizen

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When the echo of Black Sabbath’s final note dissipates, their wicked majesty will endure through their recorded output – and through the million or so bands who insist on sounding exactly like them.

Electric Citizen offer a refreshing example of a band who draw from Sabbath’s grimy chord progressions and sense of druggy paranoia and infuse that murky sound with something wild and transfixing — in this case vocalist Laura Dolan, who transcends the trope of the doomy, atonal priestess, instead delivering a vibrantly soulful performance. Stacked with sludgy hooks, lurching tempos and galloping belters like Social Phobia and Evil, the quartet’s sophomore effort conjures a sound that falls somewhere between the bad trip phobia of 70s psych metal and the bluesy punch of The Pretty Reckless. We are in familiar territory here, but there’s a sense of genuine passion and unabashed fun that permeates every track. ****

Joe Daly

Hailing from San Diego, California, Joe Daly is an award-winning music journalist with over thirty years experience. Since 2010, Joe has been a regular contributor for Metal Hammer, penning cover features, news stories, album reviews and other content. Joe also writes for Classic Rock, Bass Player, Men’s Health and Outburn magazines. He has served as Music Editor for several online outlets and he has been a contributor for SPIN, the BBC and a frequent guest on several podcasts. When he’s not serenading his neighbours with black metal, Joe enjoys playing hockey, beating on his bass and fawning over his dogs.