Having already established himself as a modern-day bluesman,
T.K. Webb formed
the Visions in 2007 to explore material that was louder, fuzzier, and more muscular than his solo material.
The Visions prove to be a competent hard rock band on
Ancestor, filling the album's 11 tracks with bluesy riffage that owes as much to
Joe Perry as
J. Mascis.
"Dreen Done Death" alternates between spotless guitar flourishes and thudding power chords, while
"Isle of Grizzly White" is a quick 90-second nugget of psychedelic space-metal. The bulk of
Ancestor, however, falls slightly short of drumming up the same appeal as
Webb's previous albums. With their ramshackle textures and emphasis on the acoustic guitar,
KCK and
Phantom Parade channeled the Delta blues with spooky conviction, allowing
T.K. Webb to emerge as one as one of the few authentic-sounding bluesmen of the 21st century. But
Ancestor explores a genre that's considerably more congested than
Webb's Mississippi meanderings -- specifically, blues-based hard rock with an emphasis on the '70s -- and the musicians neither inject these songs with new life nor tackle their familiarities with the same energy as the genre's pioneers.
Ancestor does flaunt some powerful moments, from the aforementioned highlights to the instances where
Brian Hale and
T.K. Webb trade off guitar solos like a skuzzier version of
the Drive-By Truckers. Viewed as a debut album, this is a promising effort from a highly credentialed band. Compared to
Webb's past albums, however,
Ancestor doesn't quite produce the same engaging nostalgia as his solo outings. ~ Andrew Leahey
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