Dansk version

Excuse me but it has to be said now: New(ish) hard rock has sadly become way to formulaic and radio pleasing lately. You can blame Nickelback if you have to.

Kentucky quartet Black Stone Cherry’s debut in 2006 was a really refreshing and furious rock album and the sonic equivalent of headbutting a freight train – a train loaded with great songs that is. Everything was good back then, but it’s not anymore as fourth BSC album "Magic Mountain" all too amply demonstrates.

To be honest the magic is generally absent on an album dishing out a safe and predictable casserole of light weight (!) stoner rock and something reminiscent of Pearl Jam trying their hands at southern rock.

Everything sounds (a little too) good, and Black Stone Cherry certainly know their ways around their instruments. As so many of their peers BSC are hopelessly in love with the early 1970´s rock sound and like said peers they happily build their music on riffs first played when even most of their fans’ mothers were just a glint in the milkman’s eye.

Predictable
Everything here is too predictable – especially the songs, and that is to an extent that after a while you don’t even notice one song sliding into the next one. There are a couple of exceptions though: The dynamic riff rocking "Peace Pipe" and the catchy title track to be precise.

Really it would have been much better however, if those songs had been played in a much heavier manner than they are. There’s a regrettable undertow of desire to please throughout this album though. A fact that truly manifests itself with the terrible "Runaway" with a chorus so over used that even Nickelback (oh well, there they were) would think twice before using it.

There has to be other good albums than the aforementioned debut in BSC, but it is going to take much better songs and willingness to throw caution and the desire to please to the wind.

Believe me or not but I sense something in BSC that really makes me want to like them.