PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
Toronto, Canada based roots rockers, The Commoners make a welcome return to the EU/ UK across five countries for a 2025 spring tour to promote their upcoming album, “Live In The UK”, via Gypsy Soul Records on Friday,May 16th. Freed from the shackles of the studio, they hit the ground running with these nine trailblazing songs. The album was recorded live in the UK in 2024.
They certainly like to rock out, point proven by these nine hard as nails songs hit hard and heavy as the album opens with rapturous crowd applause from Shake You Off. An opening riff scythes through the venue, putting raunch into the rock, heavying up for a drum driven major rager to shake the foundations.
A steady intro to The Way I Am picks up pace until an early, lengthy guitar solo steals the spotlight that’s let loose for stadium filling choruses.
Who Are You? Not a cover but just as powerful as The Who classic as these grooves rock and roll for some sumptuous earworms, but its main riff could move mountains with ease.
Gone Without Warning makes a stand as this song should have a warning, but as KISS say “I LOVE IT LOUD”, which is also my way of life. The recording level must surely have been in the red to contain the power here as its calm before the storm fury closes with a full on barroom boogie stomp.
An ego free spoken intro to Restless sets the scene for a heart wrenching ballad with balls as acoustic and slide guitars embrace for a six minute call to arms magnum opus that you never want to end due to a heart worn on the sleeve gently strummed full band outro.
Time seemed to stand still for See You Again as this luxurious ballad buries itself into your psyche, muscling up for gritty choruses and a sublime outro.
Devil Teasin’ Me is another lengthy number to let them fly free of twin guitar heaven that totally blew me away after just one listen, all pinned down by some fierce snare drum overload and a ferocious vocal.
Put your seatbelts on as Fill My Cup is another par excellence pounder and another superfluous chorus is another addition to the arsenal they already have. A keyboard drenched midsection is another delightful earworm.
These nine tracks fly by far too quickly as Find A Better Way closes this monstrous album on a pleading vocal, surrounded by the band on a high that stay there for its six minutes of glory!
The Commoners band info is here :- https://linktr.ee/thecommoners/ www.thecommoners.ca
The Commoners band personnel :-
Chris Medhurst – Vocals/Guitar.
Ben Spiller – Bass Guitar.
Adam Cannon – Drums.
Ross Hayes Citrullo – Lead Guitar.
Possessing a sound tapped from the oaken belly of a whiskey barrel, The Commoners are a four-piece Roots/Rock outfit from Toronto, Canada. Offering their own blend of a tried-and-true musical mixture, the group pepper their sound with high-energy riffs, soulful vocals, and rich harmonies that combine to take the listener on a journey through a Southern-style rock experience.
Channeling their deep respect and admiration for Roots/Rock trailblazers, The Commoners incorporate rhythmic stylings inspired by Motown’s groove masters, and emotive vocals akin to Sam Cooke and Otis Redding, to capture a sound that is very much of the here and now. The band’s lyrical themes drill into the essence of humanity: love, regret, ambition, and fear. Circling the forever challenge of doubt vs. desire, The Commoners place themselves into the shoes of the everyman.
Drummer Adam Cannon says, “Music, like so much in life, is about the exchange of energy,” and The Commoners make more than a fair trade. Striving to present an impactful, memorable, and downright exhilarating live experience that accurately represents their recorded works, the band carries the listener over spirited choruses and group chants, before returning them back to earth in need of a shot of something smooth.
On their 2024 album Restless, The Commoners remind us that music has a unique ability to heal, a medicine of extraordinary merit, and balm for the soul during dark times. Every major movement in history gave rise to change makers, and The Commoners are taking their stand, here to lead and inspire us all to Find a Better Way.
