Eclectic hard rock with a clear alternative angle leaves familiarity and unpredictable freedom running wildly together. The Juan Solo 7 capture the essence of organic alt-rock songwriting, with the ethereal intensity of Persona.
Led by former Breed 13 guitarist Jason Nunn, The Juan Solo 7 capture a nostalgic rock sound that’s both vast and evocatively intense – a fine balancing of grunge-kissed distortion and dreamy longer-form progressions.
With raspy, distantly mixed vocals, the sound is quick to become its own thing, and Persona fires into action with the euphoric escapism and depth of a divinely engaging title-track. Then as we move into Disco Weather, an aptly more colourful groove and melody seem to strike up a whole other side of The Juan Solo 7. The production style remains in tune with the project, and the hook resolves in a similarly fading out fashion, but the song itself has a much brighter overall mood.
This shift in dynamic continues, throughout the synth-like downpour and powerful contrasting set-up of Wildfire (a personal favourite). Creativity runs free, it seems, but always holds close to a few essential roots – the voice, the guitar playing, the contrast between softness and sudden weight, pace, and energetic presence.
For Relic, we get a hint of something Smashing Pumpkins-like. Elsewhere this album notes touches of influence from the worlds of Deftones and even Audioslave, but ultimately wanders somewhere in between, to achieve its own level of charm.
Contrast is often key, impressive basslines and passionate vocals all held up by a stop-start arrangement from dreamy to mighty. Brainstorm is a fine example, and so is the superbly structured and rather epic The Way I See the Moon.
Then we get a kind of melodic warmth and immersive atmospheric tone, for Call Of The Void, before Dissolve notes a degree of something more punk-rock-like, raising the mood again and changing the pace, for a head-banger with a touch of smooth melodic joy. Once again, the breadth of influence is vast but well-contained, and the music stands tall on the strength of its emotional roots, its songwriting, and the performative unity of The Juan Solo 7.
Finally, connecting in an atmospheric and memorable way, Im Not Human At All veers off into the electronic darkness, with quietly echoing, contemplative vocals, and lashings of synths and warped sounds, all paving the way towards an emotionally and ambiently enchanting crescendo.
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