Heavy AmericA – “Lucky”
Heavy AmericA – “Lucky” – Single Review
You know how the old saying goes…there are very few things you can count on in life besides death, taxes, and new music from Heavy AmericA.
While we haven’t exactly been there from day one, we were pretty damn close…I’ve been listening to this band from Boston for nearly seven years now if my math is correct, and though we haven’t covered them every time they release a new tune, we’ve heard plenty & you can find’em all throughout these pages of ours. Fun fact – you can find them in multiple places on our site even outside of their own reviews, because every time I run into another Rock band out of Boston, I’m always like, ‘well surely you’ve heard of Heavy AmericA,’ and write them into other reviews. Because I’m sure Boston works just like Canada right? We all know everyone up here, just like you’ve all been told we do! Alright…maybe that’s not true. Maybe I’m just doing my level best to help connect the music scene together, even from a million miles away. Truthfully, I don’t even know who my neighbors are.
Anyhow! It has actually been a while since we last had Heavy AmericA up on our pages, which dates back to the end of October of 2021 when they released what I’d personally say is one of their most memorable tunes to-date with “Call You Tomorrow.” There are a couple others I can still remember without having to push play, like “Generation Lame” from the same year, or the kickassery they were creating back in 2019 on a song called “Motor Honey (Peace)” – those seem to be the three that my brain has retained most vividly over the years so far. Heavy AmericA hasn’t always been in the game to create cuts that would be defined by accessibility though y’all…that comes further down on their list of priorities, and as a result, you’ve probably gone through some hits and a few misses if you’ve been following along with’em throughout their career. Some tunes are just easier to love than others, and that’s kind of the nature of how music works for everyone across the board. To me, the bottom line has always been that it has always been clear that Heavy AmericA puts the effort in, and they’re making the kind of music they wanna make out of genuine interest…make no mistake, they do what they do because they love it. Even if tracks like “Tails,” “Easy Killer,” or “Pray For Me” that I’ve reviewed here in the past might not possess the same degree of accessibility or hooks the people can hang with, the passion for the art of Rock has never waned. They’re unafraid to get creative with their ideas & their timing, have wild solos & instrumentation added in, and design their songs to give your playlists more than the average band. I have always noticed the effort that these dudes put into their music, and I suspect that actually comes naturally to them. They’re closing in on the end of their first decade as a band, and they’ll cruise into their second at full speed with the same level of interest, now armed with all their previous experience.
The new Heavy AmericA single “Lucky” probably fits more into the less accessible side of their sound if we’re talkin’ about what the masses latch onto…but you serious fans of Rock will have no issues with it. Somewhere in a cross between giants of the genre like Black Sabbath, ZZ Top, with a bit of QOTSA in the mix & a splash of flair from The Kinks, you’ll find a track like “Lucky” making its hybrid presence felt. The drums are killer, and as the song begins, becomes one of the most noticeably badass ingredients. Hang on tight though, because the other elements will all get their own opportunity to make an impact on ya as the song switches things up down the road. “Lucky” is the kind of song that the dedicated musicians out there tend to understand more than others. Those are the folks that can really hear the unique transitions, the effort, the instrumentation, the CHOPS – and sometimes you just gotta live with that being what it is. Like…let’s be real here, when we’re talking about accessibility at any time, we’re really only talking about the perception of the masses – and I’d be the last person that would tell anyone they should ever cater to such a widespread audience. Find your place in music where you can carve yourself out some space, do it the best you can do it, and you’ll find yourself working a decade later, just like Heavy AmericA will be able to say any day now. I really cannot express just how many artists and bands have tried the opposite method in trying to be everything to everyone, only to flame out long before they even had the opportunity to get going. Meanwhile, you’ve got bands like Heavy AmericA that are continually blazing UP with something new that they know their fans are gonna dig on, year after year…and long may they run. I’m not gonna be the guy to try to claim that a track like “Lucky” is for everyone – why would I do that, when they know themselves that it’s not? I suppose what I’m saying is, sheer accessibility isn’t always, and shouldn’t be, the goal. I feel like Heavy AmericA has been extremely diligent in how they’ll write the occasional track for everyone anyhow – but yeah man…sometimes you just gotta go with the kind of cut that YOU wanna hear too, you dig? “Lucky” is perfectly played…flashy without actually feeling like it’s flashy…and it’s freakin’ MEATY too y’all. Like when you hear the band switch up the direction of this cut around the 2:15 mark, you’ll realize there’s a whole lot more to “Lucky” than you probably realized at first. In my opinion, it’s actually the latter half of “Lucky” that makes this track as well worth your time to listen to as it is…Heavy AmericA morphs this song brilliantly as it plays on, taking it from something that seemed fairly straightforward, and twisting it into a fiery display of ambitious and innovative musicianship that completely hits the mark. “Lucky” might not have the advantage of easy to digest hooks that will be universally received, but it certainly is the kind of song that will earn your attention through how it continually generates more interest as it plays on. They’ve got the energy, they’ve got the juice, they sound inspired to do things differently – those are the things that become the real hooks in a track like “Lucky” when it comes right down to it.
Anything with tinges of Psychedelic sound or Progressive tendencies will always gonna find obstacles between itself and the masses, but never underestimate the allure of commitment and dedication – Heavy AmericA have plenty of all these things, and that’s what has kept them going strong all this time.
Find out more about Heavy AmericA from their official website at: https://heavyamerica.us
Find out what we do & how we do it at sleepingbagstudios, and be the next up on our pages by clicking here!
