Cowboys & Aliens - Sandpaper Blues Knockout (2012) Review

Back after 6 years & stronger than ever. Belgium's Cowboys & Aliens, one of my guilty pleasures when it comes to dusty stoner/ hard rock. These guys are somewhere between Kyuss & Fu Manchu with their own grooved out dirty looks. After releasing 4 full-length albums between 1997 & 2005, the band called it quits. A sad day for the (quite small) Belgian stoner rock scene. Cowboys & Aliens was one of the reasons I fell in love with the genre, my favorite locals & still highly underrated. Last year, the band announced a new EP to be released early 2012, quite the surprise!



What seemed like the last breath of a once great band turned out to be one hell of a comeback. And I'm serious, Sandpaper Blues Knockout is amongst the best musical achievements this band has put out. It's groovy, catchy & rocks damn hard. You get 4 solid tracks on this one, and they will grow on you like tumbleweed. Compared to the band's older material, this EP is much more varied & accessible while staying warm 'n heavy. It has a really fresh, uptempo atmosphere that I missed for quite some time in my stoner rock. Currently one of the favorites for this year, can't wait for a full-length album with the same vibe; The perfect soundtrack to cruise the desert like a bad son of a bitch...

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