Salvadore Ross - Salvadore Ross (2024)

The third full-length album by Dayton, Ohio-based psych rock outfit Salvadore Ross is a self-titled “pandemic record” that should be seen as “a voyage of empathetic sadness, sanity questioning, and disgruntlement with a polarized society amidst the socio -political chaos of the 2020’s.” Yet the nine original tracks here – 44 minutes of music with a big sound – actually don’t feel gloomy or ominous, as Kyle Byrum (guitar, vocals), Matt Szafranski (bass) and Kyle Sweney (drums, percussion) let air and light pass between the fuzz. They alternate heavy riffs with subtle blues licks, fitting well with the hazy vocals, always mesmerizing. Psych rock as it was meant to be.