J-Henry – Code Red
Adrenaline Records (01/31/08)
Rock
J-Henry’s Code Red is a big ol’ slab of rock. The group sounds like a bar band, with hints of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Eric Clapton, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen mixed up with just enough honky-tonk and… well, you get the idea. With Code Red, the band offers up a no-frills classic rock album. So if you’re into that type of music, you’re in luck. If not, well …
For what it is, the album works well. Songs like the title track, “Tequila Time” and “Going Your Way” are pretty much straight-ahead rockers. And the band isn’t afraid to show a softer side with songs like “I Want You to Stay” and “She Is My Home”.
Everything is pretty much kept simple. A couple of songs get a little hokey, especially “I Love My NASCAR Weekends”, which plays out like a soundtrack to a Fox telecast. And the band isn’t afraid to wear its influences on its sleeve, throwing in a cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” with flair.
This album will appeal to two groups: fans of old-school rock (with a country feel) and anyone on a nostalgia trip. If you can’t find yourself in either of those categories, there’s not too much to enjoy here. The guitars are lush, the vocals gruff and husky, and the band sounds pretty tight as a whole. Listening to this album, you can tell that they sound 100 times better live (that’s where the fun is to be had). Code Red doesn’t come across rawly enough to capture that feel, but offers up a nice representation of what J-Henry is all about.
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