Music Review // Sundogs "Legends In Their Own Minds

http://sundogsmusic.com/release/legends-in-their-own-minds/

Growing up, in my teenage years and such, I went to a lot of punk rock shows.   I always thought it was strange how back from the 1990's into what is now that music has changed so much.  Flyers and just word of mouth got me to see a lot of great bands and there was just this vibe I don't think people care as much about today.   I don't know how to explain it, but it's this culture I think a lot of new music lacks. 

Sundogs take me back to a time before I was born, a time which I only really have read about and seen in movies.   At first, "Fallen Hero" reminds me of Soul Asylum, who I've seen live before, and specifically their "Let Your Dim Light Shine" album as this just has that Americana feel to it with a little bit of Tom Petty (If you were into cheesy jokes you could say it was a little Petty)

But then we turn into these pianos, driving guitars and then "Snowman" has this rambling guitar with hints of blues like The Doors and once we go down that path we don't really seem to look back.   There are some horns and it's just cool and smooth, going from that somewhat less old sound (Soul Asylum) to what is just commonly referred to now as classic rock. 

This feels like something you would hear playing in some smokey bar somewhere (Again, you can't smoke inside most places anymore) and it just has that sense of "Jukebox Hero" at times as well.   It reminds me of seeing a scene like from that movie "Adventures In Babysitting" or something else from the 1980's or early 1990's where they had those rock holdovers before everything went synth.   At the same time, I could imagine most any of these songs fitting in on the "Guardians of the Galaxy" soundtrack as well.

With its vibe though, these songs, this album is less about a sound than it is about a feeling.   Granted, this is a sound that bands have tried to recreate since it was born and not many have come as close as Sundogs, but it's that whole scene of being in certain bars on a tour that I think many people today won't get.   While this album is titled "Legends In Their Own Minds" if you told me Sundogs had been around since the 1970's and this was the twelfth studio album I might believe you.   That belief is the magic of music.