Should you happen to be in Atlanta anytime soon, try to catch a Verge Of Bliss live show before they become famous and start playing arenas.
Based on the self-titled EP, they deserve national recognition. The power trio, led by bassist and singer Virginia Bliss, mixes classic rock fire and a jam band sensibility into something that sounds familiar but not recycled.
Guitarist Trey Bliss (Virginia’s ex) is a force of nature, seriously channeling Jimmy Page in both quality and quantity of riffs in one song. Four of the five tracks are electric guitar trips with hints of psychedelia and Southern rock, a bit like Stone Temple Pilots but without the pretension; the best example is “The Wheel,” a six-minute workout with more twists and turns than pretty much any modern rock sludgefest currently clogging up the radio.
Virginia’s voice is of a lower register than most male rock singers. Her upper register and the song “Learning To Swim” recall Ann Wilson of Heart. “Burn” takes a bluesy turn, with a monster riff anchoring the song and allowing Trey to play a “Crunge”-type solo on top of it before tearing into the actual solo in the song. For fans of guitar rock, it doesn’t get much better, and the sound and production of this EP nails the dynamics and volume of the band without going overboard.
“Two Steps” also is solid, if a bit lyrically bereft. Only the closing piano ballad “Photographs” fails to make a real impact and should probably have been replaced with “Brown Thrasher,” reportedly a fan favorite during the live shows. The band also will frequently cover Zeppelin tunes on stage. The fact that their work can stand up next to “Immigrant Song” is reason alone to check this out (they are on Facebook and Tumblr, if you are interested).
Verge Of Bliss is definitely worth the time. Here’s hoping rock radio discovers them.
