Review Summary: Like an appetizer before the main dish, Spiritual Beggars debut album might not be on par with their later recordings but as an introduction to the band’s classic hard rock grooves it does the job.
Swedish guitarist Michael Amott is mostly known in the metal community for his contribution to death metal with his work in Carnage and Carcass and also being the musical leader of Arch Enemy, one of the biggest flagships not only in melodic death metal but contemporary metal music in general. Because of that not many would expect that Amott is actually a huge fan of 70’s hard rock right down to his influences and guitar playing. In 1992 he formed Spiritual Beggars the band where he can fully pay homage to this musical era while also infusing it with modern sensibilities. To date the band maintains itself as a side project next Arch Enemy but the music they crated in the past two decades are anything but second-rate.
A couple of years ago when I was listening to all kinds of different bands to widen my musical horizons, I stumbled into their most known and accomplished albums: Ad Astra, On Fire and Demons. These records and this band played a major part of turning me into a huge fan of stoner rock music and upon listening to them, I immediately went back to check their, earlier and lesser known catalog and most of it turned out equally solid as well. Their 1994 self-titled record plays a bit of exception in this regard as its short length and musical imperfection makes it pretty much their weakest album to date. But don’t let that turn you down: While it sounds like a band that didn’t find it’s own style, they sure as hell confident in just what type of music they want to play. Heavy, groovy rock goodness.
While being one of the few representatives of stoner rock at the time, Spiritual Beggars’s music is actually closer to the feel-good simplicity of Fu Manchu, rather than the psychedelic-heavy fuzziness of Kyuss, and the blues influences are crystal clear which also makes them a close musical relative to bands like Pentagram and Trouble. Most of the songs like “Yearly Dying” or “Pelakas” follow the simple riff-riff-riff formula and Amott quickly shown his knack for writing catchy and groove-heavy riffs that grabs the listener’s attention. The tone and the sound has not dated a bit (especially if you listen to the remastered version) and Ludwig Witt’s jazzy drumming is also a joy to hear. But for me the highlight are the soaring and powerful vocals of Christian “Spice” Sjöstrand who’s unique and soulful singing are one of the key factors of elevating the band’s music and give its own characteristics.
The songs themselves manage to contain a consistent level of energy but at the same time they can be a little underwhelming in their simplicity. For me the two highlight in this record are “The Space Between” and “Magnificent Obsession”, the former being a groovy headbanger with an absolutely infectious chorus. “Magnificent Obsession” on the other hand is a 9 minute closer where the band breaks from the usual song structuring to indulge into a much more freehanded jamming with space-like background vocals and lead guitar sounds echoing with the thunderous riffs. It’s a great encapsulation of the stoner rock genre, too bad it’s the sixth song thus cutting the album a bit short. Unless you have one of the remastered versions which provide a great number of demos and unreleased stuff, that rocks as well.
The first Spiritual Beggars album is a very decent and listenable hidden gem in the stoner catalog, which perfectly paves the way for one of the best and most underrated band in the genre. Its good rock music and also the sign for the better things to come. If you want to explore the music of these guys, this a great place to start.
