Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

As Donald Rumsfeld once said, so famously causing the scratching of heads in consternation and dismay, “There are known knowns and unknown knowns…” yet somehow such double talk and heroic word play should be left to Rev. Ferriday and The Longdogs, for in their new album Unforgettable Trues and Everyday Lies, the lyrical force of nature is far and away more direct, succinct and wonderfully managed than anything a politician could scramble together.

Unforgettable is a mark that deservedly belongs to the band, the memorable and the cherished going hand in hand as their deep love of the Blues comes bounding across with enthusiastic vigour and in the case of this new album, with a darker edge, with an anger of the age attached to it, still very much enjoyable but somehow more threatening, more beautifully intimidating and yet at the same time never once wavering in its commitment to allow the listener to internally dance and shake loose; the Devil after all will always allow the angels to boogie on down.

Everyday lies, whether those we tell ourselves to keep us going in the face of adversity or those we pronounce to others in order to impress or deflect our feelings, each one has its symbolic value; the same is said for the true-isms, the emphasise on what is clear and unvarnished, perhaps even understated, yet at all times striking and rich. Unforgettable Trues and Everyday Lies allows the freedom of movement within the confines of Blues to be explored and with Neil Sadler on bass, Scott Hunter on drums, the fabulous Owen Bray on harmonica and Else Black lending some terrific backing vocals, Rev. Ferriday captures the mood with pin-point accuracy.

In tracks such as Broken People, Breaking Down, Shooting From The Hip and How Long, the music is contagious, it sweeps through the veins like a miniature train buffeting against stereotype intuition and scraping down in blocks of perpetual indifference with ease. This is an album that emphasises the battle in the way that words are seen and felt, it takes a writer of absolute skill to make a menacing note come across as nothing less that beauty personified and yet Rev. Ferriday manages with absolute conviction.

A joy to be back in the company of Rev. Ferriday and The Longdogs, a fact of life that gets better and better each time they come around.

Ian D. Hall