What would've possibly happened when a bunch of hippies from the late 60s were suddenly exposed to the greatness of Deep Purple and Captain Beyond, and said “Ah, fuck it”? The result would've sounded something like Siena Root, although these Swedes are a current band.

Their hippie romp rears its ugly, hairy, smelly head on the second song Waiting for the Sun, which has this sitar bit that almost sounds like a national integration song done by an Indian band, but the rest of it is just classic heavy. And the classic heavy is what makes this band tick. There are these solid stratocaster power-chord based riffs over punchy drum grooves, an organ backing and the vocalist who sounds like an effiminate Glenn Hughes or David Byron. The band goes from these heavy classic parts to the dark calm melodies and to some cleverly executed jammy bits.

The power of the groove here is undeniable. Take Almost There for example. What starts off like a classic funky hard rock melody with a brilliant driving drum groove and vocal lines that leave a lot of room for the rest of the band to do their thing in style. Some of these keyboard flourishes will really please those who dig the classic work of Jon Lord and Ken Hensley. The song breaks into a slow blues groove from which point this would end up being a brilliant display of dramatic see-saw trip early 70s style.

Something like Wishing for More brings in a more upbeat shuffle to the table while still keeping it heavy and rocking, though more American sounding. The change of pace helps, and the call-and-response when the lead break begins, the sweet drum sound and the extra touch that the harmonica brings in make this a very cool song mid-way through this album. So you've got that, and you follow it up with a dark sounding The Summer is Old, parts of which has a vibe that reminds me of Moonchild by King Crimson, what with the atmosphere and the flute, but it peaks with some classy Black Sabbath type heavy in a great display of contrast. The whole song is like early Crimso jamming with early Sabbath, with Jon Lord guesting, and it really can't get much better than that. Pick of the album for me.

They return to a more enthusiastic and Jethro Tull-like The Break of Dawn before going for a truly awesome epic ending with Long Way from Home. Far from the Sun is a very cool album by Siena Root. Great sound, superb songs and stunning production.



Label: Transubstans Records
Year of Release: 2008