Slow Flux

Steppenwolf broke up in 1972, but reunited two years later on a new label. Frontman John Kay, keyboardist Goldy McJohn, and drummer Jerry Edmonton were back, joined by bassist George Biondo and Bobby Cochran (nephew of rockabilly pioneer Eddie Cochran) on guitar. Slow Flux is a mixed bag of an album, with several tracks (“Justice Don’t Be Slow,” “Morning Blue,” “Smokey Factory Blues”) in a surprisingly mellow country-pop vein; the single, “Straight Shootin’ Woman,” is a Bob Seger-esque boogie tune with a horn section and pumpin’ piano; meanwhile, “Gang War Blues” and “Get Into the Wind” pander to Steppenwolf’s image as knuckle-walking biker thugs, with McJohn’s blaring organ pushing them into Deep Purple/Uriah Heep territory. Kay remains a sharp lyricist, and his gravel-voiced delivery makes this a solid comeback from a band many likely considered yesterday’s men in 1974.