DUFF MCKAGAN
Lighthouse (BFD/Orchard/Sony)
Lighthouse is a shockingly good set of songs from the man who will always be known as the bassist from Guns N’ Roses. Coming four years after his much-lauded Tenderness album, Lighthouse is far better and far more believably Duff McKagan. Where Tenderness did its best to show him as a genuine singer-songwriter, this new album does a much better job of shining a light on Duff as a genuine artist.
Some of the Americana stylings are still present, with I Just Don’t Know displaying shades of Brandi Carlile – her producer Martin Feveyear is at the helm here – but there is enough of the punk rock attitude in I Saw God On 10th St and epic stadium swagger in Holy Water and the serious (and seriously good) Longfeather.
If you remember his idiosyncratic, chorus-heavy bass clunking and half-spoken vocals from GNR’s So Fine, you’ll be as pleasantly surprised as me to find Duff in fine vocal form – and capable of creating something that may even rewrite his musical legacy.
words JOHN-PAUL DAVIES