Billy Gibbons Hardware (LP)

(Concord Records) 12 Tracks - Gatefold Cover
Even in the digital age, nothing goes without the right equipment: "Hardware" is the name of the third solo album by Billy F Gibbons, which will be released by Concord Records.

Work on the follow-up to "The Big Bad Blues" (2018) took place at Escape Studios in the California desert, not far from Palm Springs. ZZ Top frontman Gibbons received support there from his co-producers Matt Sorum and Mike Fiorentino, with engineer Chad Shlosser also handling parts of the production.

"We locked ourselves out there in the desert for a couple of weeks in the middle of the heat of the summer, which was a pretty intense experience in itself," Billy says, summing up the creation phase. "Then, to blow off some steam, we just rocked it all out - and that's what 'Hardware' is all about. It's a really fired-up rock statement overall, but one that never forgets what secrets are hidden in the desert."

Although new approaches and elements continue to shine through in the LP's punchy, rocking sound, "Hardware" as a whole clearly bears the signature of Billy F Gibbons. Apart from the unmistakable character voice of the 71-year-old Texan, the sound spectrum ranges from classic hard rock to neo-metal, from country rock to new wave, from blues to surf rock touches, which makes "Hardware" impossible to categorize.