Soraia is a name you should know for rock and roll. They have a hooky vibe but they swing a metal edge. Dig Your Roots is the newest one and it builds on the solid foundation of their earlier work.

Straight out of Philadelphia, the band has the classic rock construction of four members who concentrate on their instruments: ZouZou Mansour on vocals, Travis Smith on bass, Brianna Sig working the drums, and Nick Seditious bending the strings on guitar. Their sound is all about rock – ZouZou’s bluesy voice is matched perfectly with melodic backing vocals and sharp guitar cuts. While the sound has been strengthening with each new album, Soraia has had something special all along. The band released several albums independently, including In The Valley of Love and Guns (2013) and Soraia Lives! (2014). Dead Reckoning (2017) was the first with their current label, and it was a clear signal of the road ahead. Great, hard-hitting songs like “Cupid Killer,” “Monster,” and “Quicksand” got that album moved immediately into my saved list on Spotify.

The choruses on the new album are memorable and sing-able in a way that puts me in mind of The Gits. There are some pearls in the lyrics, too. From the song “Evergreen” you hear toward the end, “I see the fucking crisis in your smile”. Wow. That’s the best line I’ve heard in a while. Can’t get it out of my head. Another stand-out is “Darkness (Is My Only Candle)” that has a punky riff to start it off and a Motor City Devils organ that rides along with it. “Way That You Want It” should be a single, with its inventive use of guitar as a backing vocal on the chorus. The closing song, “Euphoria,” has a Sass Jordan (from Rats) lilt that is the perfect way to wrap this set up. I only found out about Soraia relatively recently and I am definitely on board. Recommended.

Dig Your Roots is out on March 13 from Wicked Cool Records, a label that publishes iconic acts like Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul alongside newer bands like The Dollyrots and Wyldlife. Soraia is out on the road doing East Coast dates in February and West Coast gigs in March, plus a whole lot more. If you can see them live you’ll get to hear some of these new songs before they hit the street in the Ides of March.

Links.

Soraia at Bandcamp, https://soraiawcr.bandcamp.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/SoraiaRocks/

Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/soraiarocks/

Website, http://www.soraia.com/

Wicked Cool Records at Bandcamp, https://wickedcoolrecords.bandcamp.com/artists

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/WickedCoolRecords/

Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/wickedcoolrecords/