Is there still a place in this world for vintage-sounding psychedelic blues-rock? With Seven Moons, released on January 8, 2008, Jack Bruce seemed to think so. Wanting to keep the good power trio vibe he got from Cream’s reunion at the Royal Albert Hall in 2005, Bruce dialed up his old friend Robin Trower to revive that spirit on a full studio album.
It was just as much a revival of another sort: Jack Bruce and the former Procol Harum guitar god had also banded together for a couple of albums in the same vein in the early ’80s. Gary Husband filled in the drum chair this time and mostly stayed out of the way, but that’s OK: Seven Moons wasn’t his show, anyhow.
Now, there was nothing in this collection that goes over the top like either of these guys did in their heyday, but the sound of that era was faithfully followed and there were plenty enough chops on display throughout Seven Moons to convince you they could still perform.
Jack Bruce and Robin Trower ripped through their 11, riff-heavy fresh cuts—all co-written by the two, in mostly slow-to-medium tempo without extended jamming. That was probably best left for the live shows, anyway: Most of the target audience may not have the stamina for 10-minute Hendrix-ian solos anymore.
Jack Bruce’s voice was still in decent shape, and “Lives of Clay” provided a nice, five-minute Cream fix. “The Last Door,” one of the few uptempo tracks on here, was another highlight.
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