Soul Hat
Good To Be Gone (Epic) (STAR)(STAR) 1/2
Members of Austin’s Soul Hat avoided signing with a major label because they realized they were a work in progress. That construction continues with “Good To Be Gone,” their major-label debut. The “Southern rock” label can be largely tossed to the wind-the only Southern band that remotely compares is the Allman Brothers, and that’s not a bad league to be in. Vocalist Kevin McKinney and guitarist Bill Cassis are coming into their own, and that can only help the band shape its identity. Cassis is a bluesy chameleon, sounding at various points like Rush (“BoneCrusher”), Zeppelin (“Good To Be Gone”) and Hendrix (“Wiggin’ “). That said, there’s still filler aplenty, but plenty of potential too: the opener, “Homer,” rocks with the swagger of mid-’70s Aerosmith.
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