Uncooked would appear to be a part of ZZ Prime’s DNA, a lot much less the title of one in all its albums. However we have by no means heard the Texas trio fairly this sort of uncooked earlier than. There is a form of brilliance that resulted in RAW: That Little Ol’ Band From Texas Unique Soundtrack. It is a dwell album with out an viewers, led to when Banger Movies, makers of the 2019 Netflix documentary, gathered the group at historic Gruene Corridor, billed as Texas’ oldest frequently run dance venue, ostensibly for some nonetheless photographs. However the band’s gear was arrange on the stage, and suffice to say that when Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard are in a room along with devices, music is certain to occur.
That ad-hoc session was captured – gloriously – for the movie and now for this belated companion. An honest argument might be made that that is the, or not less than a, definitive ZZ Prime doc, capturing the band in its “native habitat,” taking part in for one another, with out overdubs or studio polish, simply relaxed and having an audibly good time. It is a fly-on-the-wall-like glimpse into the rehearsal room, with some stage lighting or two connected, and whereas there have been just a few ZZ Prime dwell albums in entrance of audiences, from Aspect One among 1975’s Fandango! on, none have captured the uncooked essence of ZZ Prime like this.
Probably the most pronounced characteristic of RAW is its combine. It is lean and imply, every of the devices completely balanced and distinct from one another. That works to Hill’s profit greater than the others; his chunky bass traces might be appreciated greater than ever earlier than, laying down a thick backside that grooves out and in of Beard’s strong meters. That, in flip, illustrates how key that rhythm part telepathy is to Gibbons, whose biting guitar tone jumps out of practically each music, whether or not he is serving to to carry down the rhythm or searing any of the solos on the 12-song set.
The circumstances allowed ZZ Prime to do a few deep digs into its catalog – just like the opening “Brown Sugar” (theirs, not the Rolling Stones’) from ZZ Prime’s First Album in 1971, which Gibbons begins with some bluesy riffing and light-weight drum touches from Beard earlier than it builds into leaden, in-your-face rock. Gibbons and Hill interact in some unison vocals through the bouncy “Thunderbird,” whereas “Blue Jean Blues” is a gradual, virtually fairly monitor that reveals a tasteful restraint that is not typically a part of ZZ Prime’s make-up.
The staples profit from the setting too, significantly ferocious takes of “Heard It on the X” and “La Grange,” a stretched-out “I am Unhealthy, I am Nationwide” and a lusty romp by “Tube Snake Boogie.” Shed of Elminator‘s technological sheen, “Legs” and “Gimme All Your Lovin'” stand on their very own three-piece toes as killer rock anthems, the grooves even meatier than on the studio recordings. RAW is probably the final ZZ Prime recording we’ll hear from Hill, who died in 2021 and to whom the set is devoted. In that case, it is a fond, and deservedly raucous, farewell, proof that fifty years in ZZ Prime can nonetheless blow the roof off any joint, whether or not it is in entrance of a crowd or simply one another.
ZZ Prime Albums Ranked
From the primary album to ‘La Futura,’ we try the Little ‘ol Band From Texas’ studio data.
