Eliza Neals - Breaking And Entering (2015)

A lot of great music has come out of Detroit - from Motown artists to Bob Seger. Whatever else the city may (or may not) have going for it, it can certainly lay claim to a lot of great music. Joining the tradition of Detroit music is Eliza Neals.

On her new album, Neals grabs the attention immediately with the opening track "Detroit Drive". This is a country-blues jam that will get you stomping your feet. The melody of this song is certainly catchy, and it is reminiscent of Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band. That would be pretty good in itself. However, then you hear Neals sing and you can't help but think about Janis Joplin. Hers is a raspy voice that injects a lot of soul into her tunes. You could say that it's a voice made for singing the blues, and you wouldn't be wrong. Don't be surprised if you find yourself listening to this tune.

That song is followed by the title track "Breaking and Entering". This one is a good contrast to the opening song. It is a slow-burning blues groove that features some great guitar as well as Neals's vocals, which are howled as much as sung.

Neals is joined on a couple songs by another well-known Detroit musician: Kenny Olson, a guy who is best known as Kid Rock's guitarist. Olson adds a healthy dose of rock and roll to "You". The other song that features Olson is "Southern Comfort Dreams". As the title suggests, this song definitely has a southern feel. It definitely brings to mind some of the southern rock bands of the 70s - especially since there is a bit of psychedelia in the guitar.

"Pretty Gritty" is an interesting song simply because of the blend of sounds in it. You hear some boogie-woogie piano especially at the beginning. The guitar in this song vacillates between blues-rock and rpaid-fire hard rock, and really ties the song together.

Eliza Neals shows herself to be quite a talented songwriter with this album. She wrote or co-wrote all 12 songs on the album, and she can tell a pretty good story whether she's singing about a cheating man (which she does frequently) or being "the girl who's good at running wild". And she's no slouch as a singer either with her powerful, raspy voice. If you're a fan of blues rock, and in particular of Janis Joplin, this is an album that will fit very well into your collection. ~By Gary Schwind

TRACKLIST
01. Detroit Drive (3:03)
02. Breaking And Entering (7:03)
03. Jekyll And A Hound (4:12)
04. Goo Goo Glass (4:00)
05. You (5:38)
06. Pretty Gritty (3:15)
07. Southern Comfort Dreams (3:47)
08. Windshield Wipers (4:19)
09. Sugar Daddy (4:05)
10. I'm The Girl (3:24)
11. Spinning (3:24)
12. Breaking And Entering (Radio Edit) (4:30)