Veruca Salt--Ghost Notes

[NickLorenza]

I've been streaming this new Veruca Salt record a lot the last few days.  I can't stress enough how pleased I am with it.  These girls really haven't lost a single step in all these years.  The songs are all pretty damn strong and the girls' voices sound just as great today as they did 20 years ago.

This isn't merely some 90's nostalgia act, this is some seriously great new rock music from a band I've missed dearly.  The music has a freshness to it, a relevance if you will that bands like Soundgarden, Alice In Chains, and STP didn't really have with their post reunion music.

I really did like the 2 releases Louise did with different lineups(especially Veruca Salt IV) but when I hear this record I smile cause there is really nothing like a Veruca Salt with Louise and Nina.  Much like Scott and the Deleos have a magical chemistry that makes them belong together so do these girls.  Great songwriting, killer harmonies.  Listening to this record makes me wonder what the last 2 records could have been like had this lineup played the songs.

From the very first track on Ghost Notes it's apparent these guys mean fucking business. It's got grit yet it's slick, it's catchy, and it fucking ROCKS!  The tracks all flow pretty good. If you are looking for the big Bob Rock sound of 8 Arms To Hold You, you won't exactly find that here, but it does sound really good, WAY better than American Thighs does.

Stand out tracks to me are "The Gospel According To Me", "Black and Blonde", "Eyes On You", "Empty Bottle", "Come Clean, Dark Thing", "Triage", "Museum Of Broken Relationships", and "Alternica". "Alternica" is one hell of an album closer!  The faithful wait all these years was totally worth it!

If you liked any of this band's material in the past they don't disappoint here.  I'm super excited and can't wait to pick up my copy of this cd!

[JBattista]

I'm so happy that everybody is back writing music with each other again. Nina and Louise's other stuff were great but just didn't have the bite that this album has. Other than Eight Arms, Definitely Maybe and Core, there isn't an album that I could sit and listen all the way through without skipping a track. The album is THAT GOOD. I'm loving every song right now, but Come Clean Dark Thing, Lost To Me, and Alternica are my favorites. Alternica is such an awesome album closer.

[JBattista]

Now they're streaming on Periscope. My love for this band has just skyrocketed.

[NickLorenza]

I didn't realize that Black and Blonde was from Tonight And The Rest Of My Life era Nina Gordon solo material.  Although that version is kind of different and I do prefer this version greatly.  I had read somewhere that eventually they were going to mix in a few tunes from their time apart which I actually think is a great idea.  If that's the case I do hope they re-record Number One Camera at some point. When you hear that song you'll quickly see it was obviously meant to be a Veruca Salt tune.  I also would love to see them throw a few of the Louise only era Veruca Salt tunes in their set lists cause even with a lot of those you can tell they were written in a way where Nina is meant to be singing too.