DANAVA - HEMISPHERE OF SHADOWS

I meant to write this review months ago but to be honest, I have more important things to do than tell you lazy fucks what to listen to in a timely manner. You get it when you get it.

If you read my review of their last album then you already know if nuts about this band. Hemisphere brings back everything I liked about the last album (heavy-but-technical riffs, super tight rhythm section, weirdo synths) and puts a new spin on it all. The main difference between this and their previous albums is that they've added a healthy dose of boogie to their sound. This is obviously a deliberate move; frontman Dusty Sparkles has been singing the praises of Michael Schenker is recent interviews. Speaking of which, is it just me or is heavy boogie making a comeback lately? Annihilation Time took that turn when they morphed into Lecherous Gaze. Saviours' last album definitely cranked up the ZZ Top a few notches. I'm not complaining; I'm a big fan of bands like Cactus, Robin Trower, and early James Gang. But I issue a warning to all you heshers with a penchant for 70's blews rock- it's a slippery slope from heavy boogie to dad rock. Ethan Miller miller and Joel Robinow (of Comets on Fire and Drunk Horse) have been toeing (and sometimes crossing) the line for years with Howlin' Rain and Isaiah Mitchell (Earthless) has fully crossed over into dad territory with Harderships. What gives? Is dad rock cool now or is my peer group just getting older?

DANAVA

Is it too late for me to declare Danava's second album, UnonoU, the "Best Album of 2008?" I don't know what rock I've been hiding under for the past two years, but this album kills it. There's a lot of bands out there these days taking their style from late 60s/early 70s hard rock, but these guys are definitely taking in their own unique direction.
The album starts of with the riff-heavy title track and carries on in the same vein into "Where Beauty & Terror Dance." After a healthy dose of classic hard rock the band throws in some ultra-proggy synthesizers to great effect. "The Emerald Snow of Sleep" starts off quiet with a Krauty synth sequence before blasting off into full-blown Hawkwind territory and then finishing of Side A with a flourish of horns that sound like they just stepped out of a Family Stone album. Intrigued? You should be.
"A High or a Low" is the low point of the album, due to some sour trumpet notes and a lack of riffs but "Spinning Temple Shifting" brings back the heaviness, chugging away like Sabbath's about to go out of style. "Down From a Cloud, Up From the Ground" starts with some triumphant guitar riffing and works it's way into sci-fi synths and heroic vocal crooning from frontman, Dusty Sparkles, before veering back to proto-metal guitar soloing.
Side C closes out the album with a thirteen minute epic titled "One Mind Gone Seperate Ways." This songs is a pretty good summary of what the whole album is about. Instead of simply rewriting their favorite Sabbath and Blue Cheer riffs, Danava dig deeper into their record collection and pull out Hawkwind, King Crimson, Blue Oyster Cult, and even some early Alice Cooper. The results are fantastic and show a huge amount of growth since their deput album in 2006. This is a band that's not afraid to take chances even if it means maybe losing some of their less adventurous listeners. I, for one, am a true believer. Word has it that there's a new album on the way, so keep your ears to the ground.