Up-and-coming guitar hero Monster Mike Welch (all of 17 years old) unleashes with a vengeance on his stinging sophomore outing Axe To Grind (Tone-Cool 1159; 48:29). He flaunts some impressive slide work on “Palm Of Her Hand” and digs into the slow bluesy title track with passion. The kid kills on shuffles like “Every Time You Lie” and the jaunty instrumental “Cruise Control.” Unfortunately, his “vicious growl” still comes off as more affectation than real deal.
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