We offer this as more of a geographic reference than a musical one, but if you’re curious about the origins of Troubled Horse, you need look no further than the the same Swedish town, Orebro, that spawned both Graveyard and Witchcraft, who coincidentally have new albums just out or on the way. The Witchcraft connection actually is even a little more pertinent as Troubled Horse features three members of the original Witchraft line-up, one of which (bassist Ola Henriksson) is still a current member.
But Troubled Horse is its own beast, so to speak. Like the above-mentioned acts, there is a heavy retro vibe to the band’s Metal Blade/Rise Above debut, Step Inside, which is slated for a November 19 release. However, while they may share a member with Witchcraft, their musical aesthetic is more akin to the garage-rock and ’70s-inspired hard rock stylings of Graveyard. Influences-wise we’re talking the early stuff like Pentagram, Sir Lord Baltimore, MC5 or Dust. It’s all about nonstop grooves, bluesy riffs and a frantic rhythm section. Nicke Anderssson probably loves this band.
And so do we, though as far as extremely extreme music goes, Troubled Horse are on the less extreme end of the spectrum. But, man, do they have great songs. Step Inside is loaded with track after track of classic-sounding hard rock, each with a killer chorus. Case in point, is this dandy little number, “Another Mans Name,” which we are premiering for you today.
You can hear another track, the first single, “One Step Closer to My Grave,” and also pre-order Step Inside here.
