Introducing Sabatta
Words by Michael Dickinson
We’ve never had it so good! With this wonder thing called the inter-web they seems to be a plethora of new music out there. Unsigned bands and artists all vying for our attention. Sometimes it’s difficult to wade through the reeds of creativity. There are a lot of good bands performing right now but I have found no one who I took an instant liking to as instantly as I have done with Sabatta.
Formed in South London in 2005 Yinka (vocals, guitar), Hugo (bass) and, depending what webpage your read, Oli/Matt/John Doe (drums) make up this formidable, dare I say righteous, line-up. They state some of their influences as Zeppelin, Motorhead, Metallica, Hendrix. Whilst you can hear all these bands in their music it never feels like “been there done that”. Instead Sabatta have taken these rock staples and created something fresh and wonderful. This is perfect music for driving around in the beautiful sunshine, windows down, pork-pie hats on and a crate of beer in the backseat – covered with a sheet of course! The music just makes you want to move, whether it’s stamping your feet or taking a ride in a car the music moves you, physically. In this regard they are not unlike Spy Catcher. Some tracks like “The Emperor’s New Clothes” sound like early Korn mixed with a Bad Seeds bass line, others such as “Exit Right” are what would happen if Josh Homme fell into the Funkatronic 3000 machine*. Ever wondered what Jimi Hendrix would have sounded like fronting Motorhead? You have! Just check out their version of “Ace of Spades”
If it’s the music that brings you in from the cold, it’s the lyrics that will make you stay for whiskey. Several even. These are world-weary sounding men who talk about a world that you and I live in. From the drunken night out to the botched up relationship, by way of the good old fashioned rock out Sabatta are on the same relatable level as The King Blues or Frank Turner.
Yinka’s vocals are most commonly equated with Lenny Kravitz, but in their also are flourishes of Chris Cornell and occasionally Seal (depending on your feelings toward Seal you could see this as insult, I for one think he’s a fine singer!). His higher register is the bands biggest surprise. Musically the group is hard and driven but Yinka’s voice seems to be on another level. He is also a great talent on lead guitar. Hugo’s bass line is a hard and dirty, just the way I like it. You nod your head whether you want to or not. It’s an old school post-punk sound that few bands do well these days. Tying these elements together is John Doe’s pulsating drum lines. Whilst the bass makes you tap your foot the drums make you want to rock out in the most extreme terms.
So to put this in perspective; if you like Motorhead, Jimi Hendrix, Spy Catcher, Queens of the Stone Age, Lenny Kravitz, Korn, Audioslave, Metallica, The King Blues, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Black Sabbath, Megadeath or Frank Turner, you would be some kind of jezebel… no that’s a bit harsh… fool to miss out on Sabatta. Catch whenever you can next, I will be. We’ve never had it so good!
Check out their albums “Princess Raw” and “The Emperor’s New Clothes”
*Patent pending.
This post is tagged Hugo, John Doe, Matt, Oli, Sabatta, Yinka
