Molly Hatchet were my first foray into Southern Rock after, of course, the omnipresent Lynyrd Skynyrd. In recent years I revisited those good old days somewhat curiously and bought 'Beating The Odds' on CD to see if I still liked it. Jimmy Farrar sung on this album giving Molly Hatchet a funkier bluesier edge that moved them away from the country southern drawl typical of Skynyrd and Hatchet's previous albums and set themselves on a course where they could sit comfortably side by side with early Foreigner and Whitesnake - well maybe not on the same bench but certainly in the same stadium. But that pairing was only to last for two albums before the band decided they liked the old Hatchet sound and got original singer Danny Joe Brown back into the fold.

Molly Hatchet, like rock giant Iron Maiden, have remained, with one exception, true and consistent in their album imagery which is as recognisable as the band themselves and, in Molly Hatchet's case, probably more recognisable than the band - at least in the UK. At first glance 'Justice' seems to be a continuation of Frank Frazetta's horse and rider artwork but despite the similarity to the Death Dealer on the cover of Hatchet's debut album it would seem, by the credits, that it's a painting by Paul Raymond Gregory. Frank unfortunately passed away early in May of this year and I'm sure that a lot of rockers out there will remember his work on the first three Hatchet albums as well as Nazareth's 'Expect No Mercy' right up to Wolfmother's debut release. But, before this becomes a Frank Frazetta retrospective, let's move on.

In parallel to Lynyrd Skynyrd's Gary Rossington, Molly Hatchet's lead guitarist Dave Hlubek is the only original member left in the band although there was a point  - nearly a decade ago - where not a single original member was left in the band. This was brought about in part by the illness and then, later on, the passing of vocalist Danny Joe Brown. Phil McCormack is the band's third singer who's been with the band since 1996 but this is the first time I've heard the band with him singing.

As you'd expect the southern boogie comes thick and fast in the form of 'Been To Heaven - Been To Hell'. There's bar room piano, 12-bar blues, female backing singers and slide guitar. Phil McCormack's voice is deeper and gruffer than all those who came before. 'Safe In My Skin' keeps the tempo and the blues going. But there's a twist to the formula three tracks in on 'Deep Water' which makes my head bob up like a meercat's when I hear synths. Synths! 'Deep Water' is all out straight ahead rock, barely a blues riff in sight, and starts off with its underbelly sounding alarmingly like Bon Jovi's 'Living On A Prayer' we even have some "Oh-Ohs" to contend with. Or should that be "Uh-Ohs"? It's an uneasy mix for me and one that I find difficult to reconcile.

Hatchet comfortably get back to their roots with next track 'American Pride' a story of dice, alcohol and women and for the mainstay of Über Röckers a preferable alternative to Skynyrd's recent 'God & Guns' combination. Hatchet then switch back to their straighter variety of metal with 'Gonna Live 'Til I Die' which has some good old fashioned retro dual guitar lines running through it.

A couple of cleverly placed back to back ballads follow in the form of 'Fly On Wings Of Angels (Somer's Song)' and 'As Heaven Is Forever'. The former is dedicated, as is the album, to the memory of 7-year-old Somer Thompson who was tragically abducted and murdered in Florida. Together they provide a nice stop gap, a 12 minute silence of sorts where you can stop and consider the injustices in the world.

Getting back up to speed proves a little difficult for Hatchet with 'Tomorrows And Forevers' which is another straight rocker that sits awkwardly, in my opinion, within the band's style or more importantly Phil McCormack's singing style. I'm sorry. I'm set in my ways but it somehow seems wrong for a keyboardist to have a boogie woogie piano and a synthesiser in the same set up. Rhodes, organ and piano are okay but synths pads? And so it is that 'Vengeance' starts but luckily and quickly it breaks out from the synth pads into familiar Molly Hatchet hard rocking territory.

'In The Darkess Of The Light' starts off with McCormack's best Loius Armstrong impression and I spend the next five minutes trying to imagine what if...

The album closes with McCormack shouting for 'Justice' above a chorus of angelic gospel backing vocals. In a vague shadowing of Freebird the pace doubles up with impossibly long piano runs, which give way to some fast licks and freeform guitar battling.

So this is the Molly Hatchet of today. Get up onto their website for a closer look - it has thunder and everything.

http://www.mollyhatchet.com/

http://www.myspace.com/molly_hatchet