I’ve had this debut cd for a couple of weeks, but due to the pressures of the day job I’ve been unable to put the metaphorical pen to paper. Based around the Philadelphia duo of singer/guitarist of Kevin Showmaker and drummer Dom Vigilante, Ignarus have produced a quality collection of confident, mature rock songs that spring from the speakers and to be honest belie their young ages. Showmaker has a raw edged, soulful quality to his voice; the tunes are steeped in hooky, down tuned riffs and yet sound inherently fresh. There’s influences coming from all over, touches of early Sabbath and that Pearl Jam groove that flows as a very listenable album. There’s no mention in the bio of a bass player, so I assume Showmaker must have recorded the bass parts and along with Vigilante, it’s a powerhouse rhythm section. The delivery is in part, similar in feel to say, Zakk Wylde’s Black Label Society. Dark and brooding, the perfect foil to the guitar riffery. But equally, the songs are well constructed, a mixture of hooky choruses and deep lyrics. As a debut album , they’ve set themselves a high level of musicianship and it’s the overall confidence that impresses me. To be honest there isn’t a bum track on offer, but “Shadow Of Pain” and opener “Know It All” stand out. “Shattered Life” has a Staind quality and demonstrates the band’s awareness of the use of tempo, keeping things multi-dimensional.  

There’s also some tidy guitar solo work, which hasn’t been overdone, but proves that Showmaker knows his way around a fretboard.  By and large this is the key to Ignarus, everything has it’s place and nothing has been added that doesn’t need to be there. In your face production smacks of a larger budget recording and as a package it’s well presented. They’ve managed the (near) impossible by refusing to slot into any known genre, using elements of Classic Rock, Nu-Metal and a splash of grunge to define themselves as a band to take notice of. Don’t know whether we’ll see them in the UK anytime soon but as a trio it’s obvious that the material will translate well to the stage. Check out www.litomusic.com for more details and risk a few quid on one of the most impressive debut releases of the year so far.

Let us know your views on 'Ignarus'

Track List