There aren’t many people who could rock out in a pair of jocks convincingly. Before you say ‘hang on, I rock out in my jocks in front of the mirror all the time’ take a moment – could you do it on stage in front of hundreds, maybe thousands, of people and still look cool as hell? Unlikely. It takes a certain breed and James Grim is one of them.
Brothers Grim And The Blue Murders have been winning crowds over for a few years now. They have been popping up on festival bills regularly and frontman James Grim is not averse to stripping down during their frenetic shows.
Certainly their live performance is something to behold, but the spectacle is backed up by their guttural blues rock and finally, they have delivered their long-awaited EP/mini-album, Roll It In. Six songs best described, by the band themselves, as “sex-voodoo-delta-blues-a-billy”. All that plus a cover of AC/DC’s “Kicked In The Teeth”.
The older fans listening to Roll It In might draw similarities between Brothers Grim and Rose Tattoo, Beasts Of Bourbon, or Chain, and the younger listener might hear a little of The Fumes or even The Drones on “Ease On In”.
However, before categorising this EP, it would be remiss not to mention the blues slide guitars, the honky tonk, and overall rockabilly infusion that ensures these guys sound distinctive.
In fact, everything about Brothers Grim screams genuine, from their swamp-thing appearance to their frightening lyrics in “Baby Girl”. That’s why, when the lead singer sings about shooting someone “in the face – then twice more to be sure”, even in his jocks, you take heed.
