Dave Davies is rock royalty, full stop. Not only is he credited with single-handedly creating distortion for rock n roll guitar by taking a razor blade to the now legendary green amp, he was a key member of England’s first and most famous sibling rivalry band, The Kinks. Davies, along with brother Ray, spent the better part of 30 years over four decades contributing to the most comprehensive body of work of all England’s Big Four bands. Surfacing just under the radar after the demise of The Kinks some 20 years ago, Davies suffered a severely debilitating stroke in 2004 and spent the better part of two years convalescing, heroically learning to talk, walk and play guitar again. In the decade since Davies has continued to write, tour and record, releasing half a dozen albums since 2006. Of all Davies’ recent recordings, his latest is perhaps his most accessible. Earlier this year Davies recalled, “This time we wanted to make a more song-oriented piece of work with catchy hooks and emotional melodies, so we decided on a more rocky-poppy approach more in the mainstream”. Written, arranged and performed entirely by Davies and his son Russ (himself a noted EDM artist, having produced more than 15 albums, performing under the pseudonyms Abakus and Cinnamon Chasers) the father/son duo recorded Open Road over an extended period of time in both Lisbon, Portugal and Wiltshire, England. All nine tracks feature a soft, fierce vulnerability to the elder Davies’ vocals unlike any other in rock music today. Uniquely poignant and deeply personal, Davies spends a great deal of Open Road looking back, reflecting on his 70 year journey through tracks Don’t Wanna Grow Up, Path Is Long, Forgiveness, Slow Down, Sleep On It and others. Captivating and surprising, Open Road is an extremely moving listening experience, an exquisite record.
Rating 8/10
