Mollo Rilla is a rock band from Cleveland, Ohio. Formed in 2017, the quartet resulted from the members leaving their former bands. Mollo Rilla’s core mission is simple: musical freedom and damn good rock music. The group enjoys blending other styles, such as latin, disco, flamenco, classical and theatrical, along with their own style of American rock beats. They write songs about freedom, fantasy, faith and another theme that never gets old – love. Members are Marco Ciofani (vocals/lead guitar), Simeon Ruple (keyboard/backup vocals), Austin Adams (bass/backup vocals),and Joey Shannon (drums). Their self-titled album Mollo Rilla was recorded and mixed in Akron, Ohio at the Akron Recording Co., mastered in Cleveland at Cauliflower Audio and for the hard-core “black disc” fans out there, Molla Rilla was pressed on vinyl in Columbus at Musicol Recording.They state that their music is most comparable to artists like Queens of the Stone Age, Kyuss, Muse and Jack White.
Within the few moments of listening to the first track “Ego” I was fairly certain that this Ohio band had no trouble in nailing the “doom/stoner/rock-metal” genres on their head. Things get even better with “Nightmare” with its infectious guitar licks, searing solos and driving rock beats – a lot of rock n’ roll attitude in there for sure. “Holy Water” takes things in a different direction. I heard a lot of old school influences, like early Queen, Doors, Iron Butterfly, Grand Funk Railroad and Ram Jam, but I could also hear Queen of the Stone Age, too. I’ll also add here, for the record, if you like hard rock guitars with creative kick ass solos, this is your band. “Ghetto ghoul” may be what you think a ghoulish song could be – creepy and spooky. I would say, take one-part Doors, one-part The Cramps and mix it all up in a doom metal batter and this is what you’ll get – tasty stuff! One of the longer songs on the album is “In Dreams” and this one mixes sounds of death metal guitar, low brooding bass lines and wildly eerie synths (think horror flicks), within a concept song framework. The darkness within this number reminded me of Black Sabbath. “Nectar” features a more psych rock flavor and a trippy, hippy rhythm. A lighter mood than the previous songs during the verses, but with a gloomy chorus to add a dose of darkness. The ending gets really good as the band taps into a theatrical rock metal vibe. Next up is “Gabriel” a slower tune with low tribal drumming, soulful echoing guitars and celestial sounding keys. The group definitely sets a more relaxed tone here and shows a different side to their talented musical chops. “Anthem (Intro)” appears to be the introduction to the following song by the same name, and only vocal and piano are heard – you can really hear Marco Ciofani’s tonal range beautifully here. “Anthem” then goes into this pure classic rock n’ roll sound – think of those danceable, tribute-styled songs a la 1970s, or like classic AC/DC – good stuff, man. “End Times Preacher” rips it up fast and hard in a punk/thrash rock kind of way – this one should get you moving and shaking. Damn, I don’t think this band is going to let up one bit. The next song “Flower” tones things way down and it really blew my mind. I mean, I thought I was hearing a completely different band. Never mind that it’s over ten minutes long – all of it was gorgeous! So, if you’re familiar with smoky western guitar, lounge-like swing groovy-ness from the 1960s, then you’ll understand where I’m coming from. “Pyramids” brings the listener back to the band’s fast and furious punk-thrash-metal style. I would say this one is maybe akin to System of a Down or Rage Against the Machine, but those are bold guesses, as this song offers so many more creative twists and turns. “Ascension” features a little less hard rocking quality and surprisingly a fantastic melody. Right off the bat, I thought of Alice and Chains. What’s interesting here is their use of dead air after singing “Ascension” during the chorus. Then they go into this lofty, ambient solo with fantastic vocal harmonies, piano and ride cymbals and abruptly go back into the song’s main guitar riff, while ramping up a theatrical rock vibe at the end. The last number is “Odyssey” and this one was worth waiting for. Guitar riffs like Judas Priest meeting up with, I don’t know, Motörhead and several other rock gods, all inside a bad ass rock n’ roll sound that doesn’t let go. The band throws in some futuristic synths just to throw you off, and then belts you down and makes your ears bleed with one of the highest screeching guitar licks you’ll ever hear. Insane! At first, I didn’t know what to expect from a band with a strange name and a hefty collection of songs, but after a few minutes in I was hooked. If you like both old school rock style from the bands I’ve already mentioned and some others like Deep Purple, MC5 and KISS but you also like the modern stylings of today’s rock bands, then give Mollo Rilla a try. And, oh yeah, if you need a soundtrack for the rest of your summer, this may be what you’re looking for – I know it’ll be mine.
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