"What," I hear you cry, "Another Gene Louis release?" 

This time it's physical.

Whilst the human songwriting machine cracks on with a new Bullets And Octane album he has managed to squeeze this beauty out and, when I say physical, Gene's actually put it out on CD and not just iTunes.

Another side to the Gene Louis arsenal is The Brave Ones and this here eleven track CD shows that the guy is showing no sign of relenting on the musical front and, even after initial listens, shows no sign of watering down his talent or spreading himself too thinly either. This record sails pretty closely to the good ship Social Distortion, from the excellent production to Gene's whisky soaked vocals which, if I'm being honest, just about have the edge over Mike Ness these days. Featuring a sprinkling of songs previously released on the Brave Ones EP which I had the pleasure of covering when it came out, it's the new tunes that steal the show on this here opus.

The 'Wild Horses' feel to 'Sad Serenity', with its stripped down acoustic guitar and piano, shows off the ranger in Louis's vocals and draws the listener in to the story that's unfolding through the speakers as Gene delivers another cracking tune.

It seems that Gene Louis is jack of all trades and, sickeningly, master of all trades! The production is spot on, as is the arrangements and playing and as you'd expect. With an assortment of faster, more punkier songs and slower songs this just about has the Jewson lot. One thing for sure when you put it on the player it's unmistakably Gene Louis and that's got to be a good thing.

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