STONETRIP – Run Free (2023)+FLAC

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Melbourne’s STONETRIP have established a tremendous, solid, fan base reputation since formed 2019 for their energetic live shows and have absolutely no pretensions to do anything other than play classic hard rock. Their self-titled EP was released via Golden Robot Records back in 2021 and showcased the band’s impressive range, both in songwriting and performances.

”Run Free” is STONETRIP is their impressive full length debut album, and if you think due their name this is some kind of stoner rock, you are wrong. This is bass-pumped hard rock with hits of Thunder, ’80s Bad Company, Black Star Riders, Ryan Roxie, etc, plenty of melodic guitars, clean powerful vocals and top class, vivid production sound.
The band worked with Australian producer & engineer Ricki Rae of Lighthill Sound Recording Studio to polish their new songs into a brilliant shine that for sure set the benchmark for Oz Rock in 2023.
Can’t stop playing this album…

”Run Free” is a work that draws deeply from the band’s combined experience and, nostalgic flashbacks aside, gives a sumptuous and very relevant treat to anyone with ears to hear.
Reasons to feel good are few and far between these days, and so songs like the cocksure Leave A Light On, with their ability to bring a smile to the dial and uncontrollable twitching in the nether regions, should be treasured a welcomed as such.
If you’re of a certain age – hell, even if you are the offspring of someone of a certain age – this is music you’ll clutch to your breast like a dear old toy as soon as you hear it. And that is something very much worth celebrating.

Mark Ritchie has a comfortable, lived in voice, the sort that has undoubtedly matured with age; he’s a clever singer, confident in his own skin and ability, a vocalist who never over sings but gives a beautifully controlled performance throughout, even adding value to more prosaic material like I Am Tomorrow.
Similarly guitarists Mick Malusa and Jason King keep things taut and energized without ever resorting to pointless bludgeon or, indeed, needless extravagance. Their playing serves every song perfectly, and when they lock in with rhythm section Con Batz (drums) and bassist Sebastian Barahona they provide a formidable backdrop for Ritchie to front.

But for all the musical dexterity on show, it’s the songwriting that’s the key to Run Free’s success; at thirteen songs in length, the danger might be that the album collapses under it’s own weight; however every song keeps things tight, economical and energized, meaning that you’ll never get the chance to get bored.
These guys clearly know what they are at when it comes to making a very listenable rock record – for every one else there’s an awful lot to enjoy.
HIGHLY Recommended

01 – Dark Night
02 – Sideways
03 – Nightmare
04 – Scare Me
05 – Run Free
06 – Pretty Flowers
07 – Leave a Light On
08 – I Am Tomorrow
09 – My Angel
10 – The Show
11 – Mercy
12 – Runaway
13 – Wild Hearted Son

Mark Ritchie – vocals
Mick Malusa and Jason King – guitars
Con Batz – drums
Sebastian Barahona – bass

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