ALBUM REVIEW: Stone Broken - All In Time

Stone Broken’s “All in Time”: A slick showcase of anthemic Hard Rock.

From the opening riff of the 1st track: “Not Your Enemy”, I knew I was in for a treat. The track is concise and to the point. They’ve drawn a smooth connection between the forceful pacing of their more aggressive peers and the anthemic choruses of bands like Black Stone Cherry, or maybe Nickleback-when-they-were-good. What’s more, they’ve created a commercially viable album while retaining the musical integrity that made those bands’ earlier albums so great. As a big Maiden fan, I was further rewarded by the harmonic guitar refrain of “Better”.

Throughout this album guitar is used conscientiously regarding other instruments, something occasionally left wanting in other comparable hard rock acts, and “Better” is no exception. The verse riff has enough flavour to get your teeth into, but leaves plenty of room for the lead vocal to make its presence known. These aren’t the only carefully cherry picked elements from outside their genre that Stone Broken use to keep their music fresh. As the banjo-lead intro of ode to nostalgia “Be There” opened I thought for a moment I’d left an episode of Firefly on in the background, but I was soon reassured when a meaty dose of drums and guitar came in for the main riff.

“Let me go” with it’s riffy-as-fuck intro and wholesome hooks yet again shows how Stone Broken can seamlessly chain together their guitar lead instrumental sections with those big, chordy bridges and choruses that keep their music so accessible. Opening with some tasteful clean guitar work, balladesque track “Wait for You” is another example of the bands great sense of texture, and shows a refreshing approach to dynamics and arrangement when compared to earlier tracks in the album. Acoustic led throughout the main verse, but coming in with a big, open chorus as I’ve come to expect, in “Wait for You” the band aren’t afraid to switch things up a little. The guitar solo fits in snugly after the main hook and shifts elegantly into a stripped down section, supported by a little piano, before one last resounding chorus kicks in again.

After the mellow themes of “Wait For You”, the punchy intro of “Save Tomorrow” is a welcome change of pace with some great clean accompaniment to the verse vocal. “This Life” and “Another Day” stick to that formula, with plenty of texture between verses and choruses, making a bit of room for some cunning guitar work. By the end of “Another Day” the Hard Rocker in me was screaming out for some riffage, and was immediately sated by the forceful instrumentals of “Fall Back Down”. This track pounds its point across with a welcome ferocity to the lead vocal as the drum and guitar lines hammer through. The track builds up a head of steam through two verses before cresting with an impassioned lead hook, falling away to a build up before a dynamic, punchy rhythm section. Another chorus, more great riffing to close off the track and hey, you’re laughing.

I thought the band might have already peaked before the anthemic intro of final track “Stay All Night” roared in to slap me back down. Only of a few bars through and “Stay All Night” is unleashed in all it’s pacy, Hard Rock glory. Some great harmonies come in under the lead vocal before a short instrumental bridge links in to another typically excellent Stone Broken chorus. After finally succumbing into a restless halftime section the track is overwhelmed by a blistering solo showcasing some impressive technicality. One more heated chorus and suddenly… it’s all over.

This is a great album. After an impressive start led to some tender moments I was a little wary that some of those tried and tested song writing chops were starting to overwhelm the riff-laden flair that keeps Rockers like me interested, but those fears were soon wrenched away by the sheer ballsiness of the last two tracks. You’ve got to have a bit for the girly girls though right? Overall: Truly a record with something for everyone. Thumbs up. Great stuff. Now go buy it!