Cheap Trick are obviously the main influence on Kix, and opener "Red Lite, Green Lite, TNT" is very Cheap Trick-esque. Vocalist Steve Whiteman sounds like a grittier "Robin Zander", more gravel in his voice. Guitars are more 1980s than anything by Cheap Trick's Rick Nielsen, more distorted and driven. Whiteman's harmonica playing is a nice touch, but it's somewhat over-used, it starts to annoy after a couple minutes. In any case, a great opener, one of the best songs by the band. "Get It While It's Hot" could be defined as more traditional hair metal, pretty standard sounding. Somewhere between Twisted Sister and Ratt, it could easily be mistaken for countless other hair/glam acts of the 1980s. Nothing is especially bad about the song, there is just no real defining characteristic. Also, the processed vocals in the chorus are pretty lame, even for 1988 standards.
"No Ring Around Rosie" starts with huge guitars/keys intro, and then kicks into a muddy riff and terrible-sounding vocals. The singing is not bad, the vocals just lie buried beneath the guitars, a pretty bad mixing job. Besides the production, its not a terrible song, but I'm not a huge fan of the band's guitar playing, somewhat sloppy at times, at times too sloppy. Also, the keyboards are just horrible on this track, very out of the place and cheap-sounding. Skip it. "Don't Close Your Eyes" is the "ballad". Very Cheap Trick influenced, I actually like the song, but not the instrumentation. The digital piano makes "Home Sweet Home" by Motley Crue sound good, basically it sounds like a toy Casio piano that you bought at a yard sale, a horrible piano sound, even for the decade the album was made it. Despite that, there are moments of brilliance in the song, very good singing, a decent solo, and solid drumming from Jimmy "Chocolate" Chalfant. "She Dropped Me the Bomb" is a pure classic 1970s style rocker. I really like the rollicking riff, very infectious. The vocals are too processed again, but when Whiteman sounds this good, who cares, great vocals. A great song, one of the best by the band. Killer.
"Cold Blood" is the most successful song by the band so far. Very bluesy, the song smokes. Like Cheap Trick before them, Kix could easily wrap a pop song in heavy "clothing". Cold Blood certainly rocks and swaggers, but there are some very pop elements in the tune, especially the chorus with its group chanting and backing vocals. A metal classic, Cold Blood is a great song, and often forgotten. "Piece of the Pie" is a terrible song. Kix are much better when looking to the past, rather than the moment. It seems forced and contrived compared to their 1970s style rockers. Whiteman struggles with the hair metal screeching voice, not a good fit. The vocals are so processed you swear it could be Def Leppard, and lyrics are just plain terrible, very cliche for a band that could write much better. Not a fan of this turd. "Boomerang" brings us back to Rockford (Cheap Trick's hometown), metaphorically speaking. Too many "dive-bombs" on guitar and again too much harmonica, but a very good song nevertheless. Good stuff. Next is "Blow My Fuse". The influence of AC/DC can be heard on this song, especially the early days of Bon Scott, right down to the electricity-influenced lyrics. Not a bad song, it has some very nice solos, and great drumming. Last up is "Dirty Boys". The fastest song on the album, very 1980s sounding. Guitar aerobics are laid down over a crunchy, almost punk-like riff. Contemporaries "Faster Pussycat" would be the reference point here, influenced by Aerosmith especially. The chorus is catchy, but very repetitive, and the backing vocals sound muddled and get lost in the mix, not a bad song, but not a stand-out track.
"Blow My Fuse" is a decent album. If you like hair metal and you like Cheap Trick (likely if you are reading this blog), you could do worse than this album. Not an absolute classic, but leaps and bounds better than a lot of really terrible hair metal out there.
Rating-7/10
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