Trudy And The Romance – ‘Blue Thunder’ album review: vintage-clad classic rock
THE SKINNY: What makes an album great and not just good? It’s a fine line but an important one—one where making the cross-over often feels like an indescribable but obvious step. You don’t have to be a critic to feel it or understand it. A great album is electric; it’s moving, impactful, and visceral. A great album is a triumph. A good one is nice. Trudy and the Romance’s Blue Thunder is good. It’s plain, good, old indie.
The thing is, back in the 2010s, the music the band were putting out was great. I remember listening to tracks like ‘Is There A Place I Can Go’ or ‘Twist It, Shake It, Rock & Roll’ and getting that feeling you get when a release is something special. Making 1950s and ‘60s inspired music is nothing new, since the decades ended people have been trying to emulate it, but somehow Chesterfield born Oliver Taylor seemed able to capture the swinging Americana energy of rose-tinted nostalgia better than anything. He was making it feel exciting again at a time when vintage was stale.
But what was present back then was boldness. Taylor and his troupe were leaning all the way in. It felt like they were following their vision all the way to the furthest point, even down to the glamorous vintage illustrations of the artwork. But on Blue Thunder, that’s what’s missing: a boldness, an oomph, a step further.
Instead, Blue Thunder feels more classic rock inspired. There is obviously still merits to that as Taylor seems to be influenced more by the songwriting and sound of Bruce Springsteen or Tom Petty. But classically written indie rock tunes are put out every single day. Each week there is some new good enough album full of them, and while the band used to feel one step ahead or one level up, this album falls in with the masses of ‘nice’.
There are moments, however, where glory shines through. The instrumental track ‘Sheena Ann’ speaks to a strong vision. The slide guitars on ‘Smashed Up My Fender’ are luxurious and lush, and Taylor’s voice is amazing. But while the band used to feel like they’d time travelled from the past and appeared in brighter technicolour, having more fun than their peers, now they feel like another band that has heard the old classics and borrowed some bits. They used to feel like true vintage, and now it’s like they got it on Vinted.
After several listens through, still the tracks on Blue Thunder merge into one. It’s nice mush of songs with no glaring faults or problems and a great performance throughout. But it misses the key thing needed to turn something good into some great and that’s some kind of kick or intrigue or boldness to make it break through to the other side.
For fans of: Overpriced vintage shops.
A concluding comment from Bullshit Man: “You’ve never driven a Caddilac, mate.”
Blue Thunder track by track
Release date: November 1st 2024 | Producer: Oliver Taylor and David Pye | Label: B3SCI Records
‘Angel’: Whereas Trudy and the Romance usually play in the realm of the 1960s, this feels more like a ‘70s or ‘80s era classic rock song that’s more Tom Petty than The Beach Boys. [3/5]
‘Smashed Up My Fender’: For a song about wrecking your guitar, this is full of absolutely gorgeous guitar moments, but in its enduring classic rock energy, it lacks the kind of theatrical streak that used to make the band so magical. [2.5/5]
‘American Rain’: With each new track, the country rock elements step further and further into the spotlight. The slide guitar details here are lovely, but the added more glitchy, almost Bon Iver-esque backing moments feel more offputting than impactful. [2.5/5]
‘Love You Now’: Okay, now we’re cooking. From the opening seconds of ‘Love You Now’, this ballad feels more considered and more impactful than anything so far. It has George Harrison-like vast guitar moments mixed with Bruce Springsteen’s classic songwriting power. Singer Oliver Taylor puts in a performance that borrows from the legends and dares to have a go at reaching their lofty levels. [3.5/5]
‘The Last Rodeo’: Tom Petty is back as Taylor delivered another Americana-twanged classic rock song. It’s nice, but there’s not much more to say than that. [2.5/5]
‘Her Cadillac’: Once again, the introduction here has me excited for bigger things. I think part of the issue is that I’m eagerly waiting for the slicker, more glamorous production heard on their older releases to make a return, but instead, it’s all staying so firmly in the world of vintage-clad indie rock. [2/5]
‘Break A Rock’: There is nothing wrong with this song. Across everything from the lyrics to the production, it is good and well done. But seven tracks in, Blue Thunder blurs to a kind of beige without much more than ‘good’ to cling onto. [2.5/5]
‘Sheena Ann’: What does it say about an album when a 90-second instrumental interlude is the best bit yet? [3.5/5]
‘Wings In The Wind’: The most engaging track yet with an instrumentation that takes some bolder moves and more space in the lyrics to put more stylistic focus onto what Taylor is saying. It’s a song that feels like a movie, which seems to be what the whole record is reaching for, but it often falls short of it. [3.5/5]
‘That Drive Home’: This one feels oddly out of place. In the final moment, the sonic switch-up for something darker and rougher. Taylor’s voice sounds amazing and lush here, but the moments of instrumental climax feel more messy than anything. But at least they’re trying something. [2.5/5]
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