the liberty underground - three feet from gold

The Liberty Underground 

Three Feet From Gold
self-released; 2013

3.6 out of 5

By Ted Rogen

It’s a bit hard to believe that The Liberty Underground is actually one guy named Jon Chorba and not four badass dudes with hair down to their shoulders and sporting facial hair. Back in in 2010 Jon Chorba decided he was going to record, mix and release his own material, which would become Three Feet From Gold. In October 2013 the album was released and it contains hard rock that fans of bands of Alice In Chains, Metallica and Soundgarden will appreciate.

The album is rooted in hard rock - anywhere from the late 80’s to the early 90’s. You get a surplus of palm muted distorted guitars, along with guitar solos, powerful-sounding drum kit as well as bass work that provides a foundation to the music. Chorba sounds like a cross between James Hatfield and an American patriot who now spends his days driving a truck and drinking too much whiskey.

The album starts with “The Letdown,” which sounds like a respawned configuration of an early Metallica song. Chorba doesn't waste much time getting all up in your grill as you can practically feel the spit of his aggressive tone on your forehead. He plasters a couple of guitar solos on as well that feel like they were manifested in the 80’s.

So what do you think of when hear the name “Fully Eradicate?” I would say a song by Megadeth or one of a plethora of 80’s hard rock bands that tried to imitate them. Anyway the song sounds exactly as you would expect. The guitar slices like a knife across your cerebral cortex and invokes imagery of the post-apocalyptic world you might expect to see as the album cover for a metal band in the 80’s. 

Chorba isn't all up in your grill all the time. He also has a sensitive side as we see on “Move On.” The guy even sounds different when he sings. The album closes with the longest track on the album called “The Year Of Deniability.” It goes through a number of changes displaying some of Chorba’s most detailed work. The guitar solo isn't to be missed on this one. 

Chorba is not reinventing the wheel by any stretch of the imagination but you have to give him credit for what he has accomplished. The album contains a number of decent songs that fans of hard rock will not want to miss. Be sure to be on the lookout for the band in your local area as Chorba put together a crew to  bring this act on the road.

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