Hard rocking and driven by an edgy guitar riff, “Your Love” by Mutts is a fantastic dose of good old-fashioned blues. The guitar opens the track with a slick riff full of overdrive and warmth. The drums enter shortly after, and the groove is established and never lets up. I was mainly reminded of The Black Keys in terms of the track’s sound. Regardless of the comparisons blues music, in general, holds a special place in my heart.
It is an essential brick in the foundation of rock’n’roll, and though its progressions are basic, they still work decades later. So to hear another up and coming band like Mutts nailing the classic blues sound while invigorating it with their own artistic stamp made for a great listen.
Upon my first listen, it felt like a classic hard blues track right away with its strong emphasis on rhythm and groove, both important elements in that particular sound. In terms of the words, the lyrics are relatively simple throughout the song – but they are still full of emotion. The lead singer does a great job conveying feeling and adding weight to the track’s words which helps fit the overall atmosphere created in the track.
The production on the track is great as well. The overall sound is well produced, yet still maintains a gritty feel to it. However, that doesn’t mean it sounds muddy. The entire mix felt very clear considering the amount of distortion on the guitars and bass, and the vocals were bright and clean on top of the track. All of the instruments fill their specific space without overlapping too much. There was also a great harmonic effect with multiple background vocal harmonies. This helped to add more melodic interest to the main vocal line, which was again another welcome addition to the tried and true blues formula.
In short: “Your Love” is a great rock song.
Though it may be a simple hard blues track, it takes the familiar mold and expands upon it with a few added melodic elements. The vocals are great, the guitars are gritty, and the groove holds steady throughout the entirety of its runtime. Mutts has a great future ahead of them with their latest entry in the long-lasting rock genre.
