Parker Barrow 'Hold the Mash' album review: The 70s spirit is alive but Parker Barrow make it their own

There’s something rather satisfying about an album that sounds like it was made to be played from beginning to end.

In an age of streaming playlists and songs fighting for attention in the first few seconds, Parker Barrow’s Hold The Mash feels wonderfully old-fashioned and I mean that as a compliment. This is a proper rock album. It has swagger, groove, big guitars, plenty of attitude and, most importantly, songs that make you want to turn the volume up and let the whole thing play.

The Nashville-based band, fronted by husband-and-wife team Megan Kane and drummer Dylan Turner, have been carving out their own corner of blues, Southern rock and classic rock since their debut Jukebox Gypsies. With Hold The Mash, they sound more confident, more settled and very comfortable in their own sound.

The album wastes absolutely no time getting your attention. “The Healer” explodes out of the starting blocks, immediately establishing the band's bluesy Southern-rock credentials with slide guitar, a huge groove and Megan Kane's unmistakable voice.

And what a voice.

I'm not going to make the inevitable Janis Joplin comparison, partly because I've never been a fan of Joplin, but Kane has her own distinctive combination of grit and power. There’s a rasp in there that reminds me of Robert Plant, mixed with a flavour of Grace Slick, but without the vibrato. She can belt when she needs to, but there’s also plenty of character and warmth in her delivery.

If you've seen Parker Barrow live, you'll already know this is a band with serious energy. That raw, live-wire quality can never be completely captured on a studio recording, but Hold The Mash comes surprisingly close. Dylan Turner's drumming keeps everything moving with a real sense of urgency, while the guitars provide the muscle, colour and swagger.

“Novocaine” is another standout, with the band stretching their sound towards something a little more psychedelic. It's still unmistakably Parker Barrow, but there's a darker, slightly trippier edge to it that adds some welcome variety.

Then there's “Nothin' Left To Save”, which feels like somebody has thrown open the windows, fired up the engine and pointed the car towards the horizon. There's a frantic, almost Led Zeppelin-esque 70s feel to it, complete with wonderfully off-kilter drumming and a driving guitar riff that practically demands an open road.

But it's not all about volume and swagger.

“Ruby's Reckoning” is one of my personal favourites, largely because it brings a mandolin into the picture. Built around a slow, country-shuffle/bluegrass groove, it provides a lovely change of pace without ever feeling like a detour. It's a reminder that Parker Barrow's musical palette stretches beyond straight-up blues rock.

“Olivia Lane” takes another turn, starting off much more restrained before gradually building into a full-blooded rocker. It's one of those songs that demonstrates why an album needs dynamics. If everything were turned up to eleven all the time, the quieter moments wouldn't have the same impact.

And that's one of the things that works particularly well about Hold The Mash. Parker Barrow clearly know their lineage, but this doesn't feel like a band desperately trying to recreate the 1970s.

There's a difference between recreating the past and honouring it, and Parker Barrow understand that difference.

You can hear the classic-rock DNA running through the album, from the bluesy guitar work and psychedelic touches to the Southern-rock grooves and occasional country influences. But there's enough personality in the songwriting and enough enthusiasm in the performances to stop it becoming a nostalgia exercise.

In that respect, they remind me a little of another band currently doing a great job of bringing vintage rock influences into the present: The Damn Truth. Neither band seems particularly interested in pretending they're making a 1970s record. Instead, they're taking what was great about that era the musicianship, the grooves, the guitar solos, the sense that an album was something to immerse yourself in and giving it a modern lease of life.

And Hold The Mash is an album you'll want to immerse yourself in. It's got proper summer road-trip vibes. Windows down, volume up. It's bluesy, rocky, occasionally psychedelic, sometimes beautifully laid-back and frequently impossible to sit still to.

Hold The Mash doesn't try to reinvent the wheel. It simply takes that wheel, gives it a good kick, points it down the highway and floors the accelerator. And sometimes, that's exactly what you want from a rock album.