Greta Van Fleet/ Starcatcher

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR

Greta Van Fleet/ Starcatcher 

Genre: Rock

Label: Lava Music/ Republic Records

Rating: *** 1/2

(Picture above is Josh Kiszka on the giant screen at Lollapalooza festival, Mahalaxmi Race Course grounds, Mumbai, in January 2023, with a fan raising his hand in similar fashion. Picture taken by this blogger)

One thing American rock band Greta Van Fleet will have to face all their lives is favourable or unfavourable comparison with monsters Led Zeppelin. Whenever frontman Josh Kiszka sings, he can't help sounding like Robert Plant, almost like he's had a vocal im-Plant. Add to that the fact that some of their songs openly follow the Led Zep style sheet. Like on their new album Starcatcher, one hears shades of 'When The Levee Breaks' on both 'The Falling Sky' and 'Sacred The Thread'.

But look at the up-side of it all. GVF produces some incredible material of its own, including some true gems like 'Meeting The Master', one of the best rock tracks released post-Pandemic. Guitarist Jake Kiszka's solos and fill-ins are textbook genius, and bassist Sam Kiszka and drummer Danny Wagner keep the rhythm section on fire. They have an incredible live set, as they proved at Mumbai's Lollapalooza festival back in January, with their songs 'Black Smoke Rising', 'Lover, Leaver, Taker, Believer', 'The Weight Of Dreams' and 'The Highway Tune' enchanting fans.

Starcatcher is the band's third studio album, besides the debut EP. The good thing is that they don't pretend to sound different from their earlier fare in the name of evolution. Songs like 'The Archer' and 'Meeting The Master' do get into a proggy mode, but the main focus is on pure, unadulterated rock, brimming with sheer energy.

Josh gets into eagle-screech territory right from the opening number 'Fate Of The Faithful' as he sings, "We fought for the fable, eh, but instead we burn; and in the end of time, oh, left an empty urn". The song begins with Sam playing a short keyboard intro, before the guitar-drum blast takes over. And the vocals stun with their eh-eh-eh-eh-ehs and oh-oh-oh-oh-ohs.

'Waiting For Your Life' begins with an acoustic guitar, and 'The Falling Sky,' has a neat harmonica solo. Despite its Led Zep hangover, 'Sacred The Thread' is eminently loopworthy, with its infectious groove and lines like, "I've caught the wind in a kite of dreams, in a flight of seams, like freedom sewn, and the people roar and the people soar, sacred the thread, sacred the thread".

The quality drops in the middle section. 'Runway Blues' is a short, energetic burst though one wonders why they kept it at just a minute and 17 seconds with an awfully abrupt ending. 'The Indigo Streak' and 'Frozen Light' are formula-driven, regurgitating songs from their earlier albums.

The last three tunes make up suitably. With its Wishbone Ash influence and innovative acoustic guitar parts, 'The Archer' is a treat. Josh's vocals are in full flow as he sings, "Vengeance is a bow, and arrows only justice when fired, I have loved, I have lost, I am the archer". Jake's guitar solo adds to the charm.

The acoustic guitar kicks off 'Meeting The Master', as Josh sings, "What a day to travel faster, take a trip around the sun, I have known no other master, he has been the only one". The tempo pick-up is slow and steady, but it doesn't stretch the volume. Finally, 'Farewell For Now' seems like the perfect wind-up song, probably designed to conclude their concerts. Here, Jake gets into Jimmy Page mode.

Sorry, one can't help the repeated comparisons, but the songs sound great on their own merit. These lads have played a dominant role in keeping rock alive among the millennials, and deserve applause for that.