Dogs Bollocks! I s'pose it was only a matter of time before a band went for it. When I was sent this album by the frontman from Bitch Queens telling me about his new side project I was always going to sit up and give it a good listen and, you know what, apart from the band name (personally I  would prefer them being called New Saints and the album 'Dogs Bollocks' but there you go), it is very impressive stuff indeed.

'Icons' opens with rumbling bass, some lyrics then a big mofo of a riff and is a pretty bloody good song in fairness as it rumbles towards the second song. Well thinking that this was a good opener my ears pricked up when the second song started; 'Liberty's Falling' is a pretty dark grooving song with a sort of hypnotic vocal providing the backbone of a very nice track indeed, a sweet guitar solo that leads to a bruising outro. If the next ten songs are as good as the first two then Dogs Bollocks have most certainly found a new fan in a far flung corner of the UK.

The playing is excellent and the songs are very well crafted and a sympathetic production is given overall where all the instruments are given their space as the songs rock, brood and just about kick the shit out of my ear drums for the next 30+ minutes. There is something quite unusual about the singer's tones but fuck me they work and add a little something to the songs, 'These Pills' being an uptempo tub thumper with some weird ranges being sung by Matt Reyes but overall another really strong song. 'Hot Stone' has a little bit of Zodiac Mindwarp embroiled in its DNA which does nothing to detract from yet another great track.

All in all a very impressive album with bits of classic Alice Cooper influencing songs like 'I'll Never Be What You Want Me To Be' or the 'Lust For Life' feel of 'No Friend Of Yours' and a whole host of other influences being shoe horned into a melting pot that is both impressive and classy. In fact you might be onto something if you were to say this album might well be the Dogs Bollocks!! 

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