FEDERAL CHARM – Across The Divide (2015)

FEDERAL CHARM are a four piece from Manchester UK who are releasing their second album “Across The Divide“, a delicious foray into British classic, bluesy groovy hard rock.
They had high profile opening slots for, amongst others, Michael Schenker, UFO, Black Star Riders, Ian Hunter and Rich Robinson which cemented the buzz.

All young fellas, Nick Bowden (vocals and guitar), Paul Bowe (guitars), LD Morawski (bass) and Danny Rigg (drums) have produced a really good album with “Across The Divide”.
Bowden has a voice really well suited to this particular brand of rock (some kind of Paul Rodgers’ timbre), really emotive and plaintive on the bluesier tracks but strong on the hard rock ones. The trick with this kind of music, I think, is to know when to shut up and let the guitars do the talking and as songwriters they’ve really got that nailed.

On “Across The Divide” you can’t ignore the large swaggering riffs in the guitar work, then complimented by sweet solos. The guitars are driven along by the steady and lively rhythm section, which powers infectious beat and groove filling every song.

The album starts off quite upbeat with ‘Master Plan’ and ‘Guess What’, tracks that show off the benefits of Bowden and Bowe’s dual guitars. While generally invoking a clasic blues hard rock groove, in composition, Federal Charm throughs in some unexpected flair.
For instance, in the middle of the very catchy singalong ‘Guess What’ there’s a bit of organ and what sounds like some steel guitar, giving the song a different feel. That same feeling becomes a bit more self-evident with ‘Give Me Something’, a song touched by some Southern shuffle akin Lynyrd Skynyrd.

However, Federal Charm is all about straight up classic rock, like first single ‘Hercules’, one of those cuts that instantly strikes you as a track that would be brilliant live. It’s fast-paced, has some very catchy lyrics and is guaranteed to get the heads nodding.
Or you have the easy accessible pop feel of ‘Silhouette’ also driven by a sleazy pack of catchy riffs, and the good time rocker ‘The Thrill’.
Final track ‘Walk Away (Time and Time Again)’ is worthy of many, many listens, it really is the most heartbreaking, heartfelt song on the record. It can only have come from something real, and while you’d never wish this kind of pain on anyone it has helped to create something devastatingly beautiful.

“Across The Divide” delivers really solid stuff, true classic and melodic blues hard rock from these talented fellows called Federal Charm.
It’s all classic rock inspired but these guys have a truly own style, pretty updated to modern times (all sounds punchy and bright) and the songs are varied, fun, entertaining.
Definitely recommended for your listening pleasure.

01 – Master Plan
02 – Guess What
03 – No More
04 – These Four Walls
05 – Hercules
06 – Give Me Something
07 – Silhouette
08 – God, Forsaken
09 – Push
10 – The Thrill
11 – Walk Away (Time & Time Again)

Nick Bowden (vocals, guitar)
Paul Bowe (guitars)
LD Morawski (bass, backing vocals)
Danny Rigg (drums, backing vocals)

BUY IT !
www.amazon.co.uk/Across-Divide-Federal-Charm
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