Press play. Track one begins with a beautiful, distorted riff. Oh no.

What has happened to the grit? The celebrated singer songwriter, the local Blues legend?

Albert Frost is a name well known in South Africa. He's performed alongside The Rolling Stones and REM, as well as having worked with most of the country's big-cheese musos, such as Valiant Swart, Koos Kombuis and Arno Carstens. People respected this Blues master after he released his 2002 album 'Catfish': a raw, yet perfectly thought out blend of seventies covers, Afrikaans lyrics, rock 'n roll, and the dirty blues.

You can only imagine how high the expectations were upon finding out that Albert Frost was set to release a new EP.

Sorry to be the bearer of less-than-pleasant news, but for those of you who have listened to 'Catfish', there is no way that 'Devils and Gods' will ever compare to the grittiness and liveliness of that inspiring album.

In terms of the latest offering, 'Television' has the potential to be a hit in the acoustic sense of the term, what with its uplifting lyrics and happy-go-lucky strumming. And for a moment, 'Spoonful' has the potential to make up for the remaining tracks; a pleasant mixture of rock and blues, more like the Albert Frost we know. Unfortunately, both songs fail to do enough to take 'Devils and Gods' to the level of 'Catfish'.

While the EP still holds a bluesy feel and some powerful guitar solos, in the end, 'Devils and Gods' seems a bit too Audioslave and not enough Albert Frost. Without the riffs, it would be difficult to tell whether or not it's a product of the 'Catfish' creator, or just another rocker in the making.