Gary Dranow and the Manic Emotions, led by former athlete and life-long musician Gary Dranow has released their latest single “All that!”, as a part of their upcoming album ‘Never Give Up’. The music project from Utah has been releasing music from 2023 and resists being boxed into genres, but their Rock N Roll influence shows up most perceptibly in “All That!” compared to their other singles.

Sonically “All That!”  is brilliant. I really enjoyed it and thought that Gary Dranow has written the music really really well. The riff on the electric guitar that sets the stage with anticipation is extremely catchy and finds itself sprinkled throughout the track. The percussion is heavy and maintains its energy until the very end. The lead vocalist matches this energy with his strong voice, while the high-pitched back-up vocals in the chorus only add to it. The bridge was for me the highlight of the song. Structured in three parts, it starts off with thumping percussion that stands in juxtaposition to the vocals that follow it that sound almost like a release. An extremely rhythmic guitar solo along with percussion that complements it perfectly end the section before the song goes back to the riff and chorus.

Lyrically, although writing about how enigmatic and beautiful a woman is in third person is a popular method of songwriting in Rock as a genre, some listeners might find this empowering, while others might see it as a claim to their agency and deem it outdated. Regardless, I think this is one of the best tracks by Gary Dranow I have heard so far and I hope to see them tap into their Rock N Roll sound more often!