Men Of Fortune is a Psychedelic Progressive Rock band from Peoria, Illinois, USA
The members are:
Joel Madigan - Guitar/Vox
Andrew Sledd - Drums
Mike Willey - Bass
Men Of Fortune is a band who are very hard to describe indeed. A curious mix of Psych, Prog Rock, Space Rock, Drone and even Stoner Rock for something wholly fresh and original.
They have been described as King Crimson jamming with Queens Of The Stone Age. That is one fucking awesome description and it's a fairly accurate way to describe their superb debut album - Time Lovingly Bled.
An out-of-this-world mind expanding experience so powerful that you don't know which galaxy or dimension you will end up in. It's one crazy ride that will last long in the memory. At 44 minutes the album has it's fair share of psychedelic hazy based riffs.
First track - Voices From The Void - sees the band perfectly painting their world of trance-like trippy based riffs. Prog Rock is the main driving force here though the band add elements of crazy out of control Pysch/Stoner Rock riffs to drown you with. This is the perfect start for these musicians to hypnotise you with as this album becomes ever so stranger as times goes by.
Second track - Some Crystal Dawn - starts off with an even more crazed psych vibe that will take you onto the next level. The band lay down some impressive riffs here with Joel's vocals acting as a guide in this weird and wonderful fucked up journey that Men Of Fortune are taking you on. There are epic riffs waiting to be discovered here. It's a perfect blend of 60s/70s Psych/Hard Rock overtones mixed with the more heavier Prog Rock vibes that is hypnotic as it is disturbing. But it has a dream-like quality that is very hard to ignore.
It's from this point you will know you will actually enjoy this album as Men Of Fortune carry on this style of Progressive Space Rock for the rest of the album. If you're not digging the vibes by now then it's best to turn away as these cosmic rockers are not changing course for anyone.
Third Track - The Passing Shame - starts off with a subdued guitar riff full of sorrow before exploding fully into life as the band lay down more epic dreamy trance like riffs. This is one of the albums standout tracks as it perfectly shows the band's musical talents and creativity all in one awesome package.
Nearly of the albums tracks are on for 7 to 8 mins in length, so you will definitely need to give this album a few more spins before getting the full effect. Men Of Fortune have written a blistering debut album that should win then an appreciative audience within the Psych Rock/Prog Rock crowd.
The album has been mixed by a certain Mr Sanford Parker. So you know this band is good if they can call on the talents of legends like Sanford Parker. Plus credit must goto Joel who recorded this album himself. He has done a wonderful job here. He has perfectly captured the bands sound and it sounds so damn fresh and original.
If you want something different to check out then Time Lovingly Bled may be the album for you. It has different moods and noises that make this band very hard to classify. So am going to with Progressive Space Rock.
Time Lovingly Bled is a wonderful audio experience you cannot do without.
Brilliant and Highly Recommended.
Thanks to Men Of Fortune and Bird Dialect Records for sending me a promo to review. Time Lovingly Bled is now available to buy now.
Check The Band From Links Below
