No Justice - No Justice (2006)

Judging by the company that NO JUSTICE keeps it is easy to see that Steve Rice, lead vocalist and acoustic guitarist, had some pretty pivotal insight early on. It is silent knowledge that when you are coming out of Stillwater, Oklahoma's Red Dirt depot, it had better be about the music. A rather small place on the map known for spawning large talent like Garth Brooks, The Great Divide, Cross Canadian Ragweed, and Jason Boland and The Stragglers (just to name a few), Red Dirt music is something that is more of a feeling than a sound. That feeling is honest music. Though the band was formed in 2001, it was in 2004 that all the different flavors settled in and NO JUSTICE came into peak season. Rock tones weave in and out of the band's solid new self titled release thanks in part to Brandon Jackson, vocals/rhythm guitarist and recent rock band recruit, and the Brothers Payne, Tony on bass and Jerry on lead guitar. Tunes like 'Never Come Back,' and 'Bend But Don't Break,' lead with the southern rock badge of authority, but gives way to the funk fusion prowess of drummer/ percussionist, Armando Lopez. Lopez shines on 'Don't Walk Away' providing smooth groovy touches in all the right places, and on 'Breath,' a melodically addicting ballad, alive with pop essence and a funk pulse. Rice tops it all off with acoustic overlays and a vocal concoction brewed from little grit and a lot of soul. Produced by JJ Lester of Stillwater's The Great Divide, and Grammy award winning engineer, Eric Delegard, the band's self-titled February 2006 release on Smith Music Group is a rich tasty mixture that goes down easy.