Music history isn't always a simple story of progress. Sure, there have been material gains in recording fidelity, equipment capabilities and in the technique of playing rock music since the 70s. But it's hard to say that the hard rock and heavy metal of the 80s, the thrashdeathblackgrungedoomsludgestoner metallicisms of the 80s onwards or the alt-into-indie parallel stream have necessarily taken music to a higher pinnacle in any absolute sense. Reviewing the latest albums by Elbow and AC/DC last year, SF writer Adam Roberts pieced his way through the familiar indie chorus ascribing greater sophistication to the former to conclude that he found 'the one (Elbow) a brilliant, almost magnificent, account of the unsophistication of life as a grown-up, the other (AC/DC) a sheerly wonderful homage to the sophistication of guitar riffs'.

This here album, the self-titled debut by Sweden's Bonafide, is squarely in the sophistication-of-guitar-riffs camp, folks. It makes me think back to AC/DC, of course, when they still had Bon Scott (maybe that's where the 'Bon' in 'Bonafide' comes from?) and were as much hard rock as heavy metal, Deep Purple if Glenn Hughes did all the lead vocals on Burn, and Blackmore was more into riffs than solos, Paul Rodgers in that brief, glorious pre-suckage phase of his or the Jeff Beck band with Rod Stewart, maybe even Aerosmith before they became Rock Stars and were still rockers. In short, it's like that cusp moment when rock was well and truly hard and considering going heavy while still doing the bluesy-woogie boogie.

You'll love it, or it'll bore you.  But please don't make the mistake of calling it unsophisticated. There's nothing unsophisticated about the perfection of these down-and-dirty, groovy, raunchy, gloriously rocking riffs. The songs are tight, punchy and well constructed and the solos stay within the parameters of the 70s idiom while bringing in the requisite flash and fire to each song.

This is an album that sets out to do a specific thing, and does it well. I only hesitate to let my enthusiasm carry me away because there is a lot of this 70s revivalist stuff out these days, and in that context this is a worthy, even memorable sample of the genre rather than an exemplar. I look forward to hearing how Bonafide notches up their act on future releases.

Year of Release: 2008
Label: Sweden Rock