After listening to Three Blind Wolves, you’d be forgiven for thinking they’re from the states. At first glance they seem to be a typical indie folk/rock in a sea of indie folk/rock. Then you hear the songs unfold, and with a few bellowing lines out of the singer they’ve washed any semblance of mundane attempts to imitate a musicians famed idol; no, Three Blind Wolves stands on their own.
The first track takes off as your typical slightly-atmospheric country/folk rock song.. Only a soft backing drone and high pitched mandolin picking set them apart, that is until you hear the low end rumble belonging to the lead singer. It ties the sound together in a way that would have seemed contrived if the vocalist wasn’t as interesting sonically. Not afraid to stand out on his own for a few seemingly falsetto range notes but tightly controlled enough to build drama for the upcoming bridge only to bring it all back into some sense of normality. The individual pieces of the song that may not have seemed like a match end up whirling together into something inseparable.
A same twist of fate happens on “Tall Man Riding”, from what starts out as a typical folk offering goes a little deeper with the vocal melodies, his voice riding along with the dipping and diving guitar riff. This table turning of expectations seems to be indicative of Three Blind Wolves as a whole. Even if your bar is set fairly high for entries into the folk genre, Three Blind Wolves puts a stamp on their sound, eventually, but not usually right off the bat. It takes a minute or two for each song to reveal their worth, and on a higher level the band as well. “Parade” comes on in with another atmospheric country intro. The song doesn’t really take off a tinged Three Blind Wolves until you hear the back-up vocals underneath. It might have been better if it ended around the three minute mark in my eyes though, the parts following get a bit more tiresome than they deserve.
For those expecting another interesting tale from the next indie folk/rock group, you may be left wanting more, but for those who just wanted to see heartfelt and passionate songs played together by a band who seems to be life-long friends, you will probably find a permanent place for Three Blind Wolves’ Sing Hallelujah for the Old Machine in your collection. For everyone else, their single releases are safe bet to whet your appetite.
