Hello Master

Upon first listen, Montreal hard-rockers Priestess unleash the kind of blisteringly loud vintage tones normally associated with retro rockers like Wolfmother and Fu Manchu, but after a few tunes, it’s evident that the Canadian quartet’s attack is just as rooted in ‘80s hardcore punk — not unlike early recordings by Queens of the Stone Age. “I Am The Night, Colour Me Black” detonates with a hard-driving blast better suited for fist-pumping than head-banging, especially once that feral and ferocious guitar solo comes tearing out of the speakers. “Lay Down” takes a Danzig approach to riff-rock, most noticeably in the way frontman/guitar player Mikey Heppner elongates his vowels. The slightly mellower “Run Home” boasts some Thin Lizzy-inspired guitarmonies as Heppner cleverly disguises catchy pop-hooks and a well-written narrative under ‘70s muscle-car rock replete with cowbell. Throughout Hello Master the band’s attempts to feel-it-and-steal-it get blown out by their own originality, whether they’re turning Jimi Hendrix-inspired riffs into their own tones on “Everything That You Are” or narrowly escaping AC/DC comparisons on standout cut “The Shakes.”