The Brew – Art Of Persuasion (2018)
The Brew’s Art of Persuasion; it wasn’t my favourite album. Formed in 2005, the band is made up of Tim Smith (bass), Kurtis Smith (drums) and Jason Barwick (vocals and guitar). In addition to being a rock band, The Brew also has undertones of the blues. In 2006, as well as ‘07, they were awarded the title ‘Best Band’ by It’s Only Rock & Roll magazine. Their sixth album entitled Art of Persuasion was released on October 5th.
Critic Joachim ‘Joe’ Brookes from RockTimes described it best as ‘a bridge between the sixties and seventies’. I wholeheartedly agree with that description, as it was the very first thing I thought when listening to the songs ‘Seven Days Too Long’ and ‘Pink Noise King’ was Pearl Jam. To be more specific, I thought of the songs ‘Even Flow’ and ‘Black’. Both bands have their guitars make almost a whining sound that, when combined with the beat and vocals, makes the bands sound very similar.
Another band The Brew reminds me of is The Technicolors. Both groups have a similar sound and old-school classic rock vibe. While the two bands don’t have the same style, they are very similar. They both seem to draw from identical influences to create robust sixties music. If you are a fan of The Technicolors, you will definitely like The Brew.
What I found interesting about Art of Persuasion is that some of the introductions to their songs, such as ‘Seven Days Too Long’, ‘Gin Soaked Loving Queen’ and ‘Naked As I Stand’, have short and distinct riffs. Each song has a different riff and gives off what the overall tone of the song will be.
I really enjoyed Art of Persuasion. It wasn’t my favourite album, but I would like to explore more music by The Brew. I tend to be drawn to more of the hard rock bands, such as Aerosmith, Journey, The Doors and The Rolling Stones. While I am currently not in my classic rock phase, I can appreciate a good classic rock album and Art of Persuasion definitely fits the bill.
Another thing I enjoyed about the album is that it comes across as more classic rock than what rock is considered to be nowadays. This album was a nice change of pace to other rock bands. You can’t hear the slams of the guitar, there isn’t any scream-singing, and the beat isn’t extremely fast-paced or all over the place.
If you are a classic rock fan like myself or revel in bands such as The Parlor Mob, The Temperance Movement, The Answer or The Steepwater Band, you will have a good time listening to this band.
The Brew has also released the albums A Million Dead Stars, The Third Floor, Live in Europe, Control and Shake The Tree as part of their discography collection. Art of Persuasion is now available for streaming on Spotify and Apple Music. They are also currently on tour with The Hydden.
